1. Controversy 11! Aging Boomers

2. Who Are the Boomers The Baby Boomers – term referring to the 77 million people born in the U.S. between 1946 and 1964 Depending on how we represent Boomers as a group, we are likely to come to different conclusions about what it will mean for this large group to move into later life So we need to ask: “Who are the Boomers?”

3. What is a Generation? Generation can refer to people who are born in a certain time period, or people who are a certain age at a single point in time (although this is usually called a “cohort”) Age-Period-Cohort model – a group of individuals will be influenced by each of these three factors – age, period, and cohort Aging effects – effects brought about by the physical process of aging, along with social responses by others to those effects

4. What is a Generation? (cont.) Aging effects – effects brought about by the physical process of aging, along with social responses by others to those effects Period effects – those affecting all age groups in society at the same time Cohort effects – associated with events affecting groups of people during the same years

5. What is a Generation? (cont.) Distinctive characteristics of the Boomer generation include: Much larger size than cohorts before or after Higher levels of educational attainment than earlier generations Praised by some as the “Greater Generation” because of their push for rights and tolerance during times of social upheaval

6. Social Construction of the Boomer Phenomenon Social construction – refers to meaningful, yet man-made facts about human existence and interaction in the world Currency, traffic lights, and college degrees are all ‘socially constructed’ (i.e., they don’t occur in nature where no humans are present), but that doesn’t mean they are unimportant Thus, social life that is “constructed” is negotiated between people, and is subject to change and transformation as our beliefs change

7. Social Construction of the Boomer Phenomenon (cont.) There were also Baby Booms between the 1940’s and 1960’s in Great Britain, Finland, and Australia Interestingly, Baby Boomers in the U.S. are contradictingly portrayed as selfish and negative, or idealistic and positive Aging Boomers tend to be presented in polar opposite ways, which is problematic for researching out what society thinks of them

8. Boomers in the Years Ahead More than four-fifths of Boomers repeatedly say they plan to work in their retirement years Yet, that number is much higher than the percentage of people who actually do so Overall, we can’t be certain how society and government, let alone individual Boomers, will respond to changing circumstances in the future