Alarmist demography: Power, knowledge, and the elderly population

Abstract

Demographic reports in the media and social policy and professional literature often depict the elderly as a rapidly growing population of needy, relatively affluent individuals whose collective dependence is straining the economies of Western welfare states and creating excessive tax burdens for younger generations. Labelling this literature alarmist demography, this article reviews the counterarguments proposed by critical gerontologists and political economists who attack the methodological biases and demographic determinism evident in the alarmist vogue. The study contributes to the debate by examining the social construction of the elderly as a special population and social problem, with specific reference to the history of old age institutions, the influence of Malthusian discourse in the 19th century and the development of the social survey. Inspired by Foucault 's ideas on population control, the article concludes that the alarmist image of the elderly population is a consequence of dominant power/knowledge relations.