Why are young people already worried about senior life?

Recently, a media survey revealed that out of 1,000 people between the ages of 18-35, almost 90% believe that they have to think about their senior lives. Previously, news of youths somewhere buying a house together to experiment on "cohabitation" senior life and “huddle-together” senior life also raised much attention.

According to data published by the National Statistics Bureau, in 2019, the senior population over the age of 60 in China had reached 2,500 million people, accounting for 18.1% of the entire population. By 2025, this group is estimated to reach 300 million people. The social reality of accelerated population aging is the main context which causes "anxiety over senior life" in society at large. Thereof, young people being concerned about senior life arises from both a perception of the current family pressures of taking care of the elderly, and an emotional anxiety about their own circumstances when reaching senior age in the future.

More specifically, what causes young people to have "anxiety over senior life”?

First is an evident decline of young people's expectations about old-age pensions. According to official data, in 2019, China could still manage 3.5 working-age people taking care of one senior person. This index will drop to 1.4:1 by 2050. In addition, old-age security system has "three pillars": national compulsive basic endowment insurance, enterprise annuity or occupational annuity as primary supplementary old-age insurance, and personal savings endowment insurance. Since the latter two started quite late, their developments are relatively lagging, with guarantee extent and coverage both insufficient. Imbalance in "multilevel" systematic developments of old-age security cause enterprise annuity to face the risk of declining pension replacement rate.

Second, family structural change causes a weakening in family support in taking care of the elderly, which causes remarkable changes in young people's perception of taking care of the elderly. According to data from the National Statistics Bureau, Chinese families are shrinking in size. Family members are continuously decreasing. In 2019, family members per household were only 2.92 people, this index was 4.41 people in 1982. Different survey data also indicate a decrease in the percentage of children who still live with their parents after reaching adulthood. The residential distance between children and parents are also becoming larger, this phenomenon is transmitting from urban to rural areas, and from well-educated groups to less-educated ones.

Current-day youths prefer lifestyles of freedom, equality, and independence. Traditional family values are gradually marginalized, and senior life more diversified. Their understanding of the responsibilities, needs, and ways of taking care of senior people gets more inclusive, and socialized old-age support concepts are increasingly accepted and advocated.

In addition, intensity of competition in the labor market is gradually increasing. The midlife workplace crisis of "either stand out or be kicked out" constantly mount pressure on young people, which lowers their expectations about workplace and income stabilities. Some surveys have found that, senior life expectations are already influencing young people's career choices. Traditional "secure jobs" are being pursued by college graduates, which deviated from rational career planning based on one's professional interest and specialty.

Our nation will enter the stage of "moderately aging" society, young people both have the pressure of taking care of their parents, and also have to worry about their own senior lives. How should they cope with their "anxiety over senior life”?

The most important premise is to create a long-term life plan, proactively carry out investments in personal human capital, and enhance one's workplace competitiveness. Investments in human capital should not be limited to receiving a diploma from school education, but also include personal health, skills, experiences, and other spiritual-level input. In the rapidly developing age, young people need to constantly update their knowledge and improve their professional qualifications. This is the only effective way to improve job security and income stability.

Young people need to do long-term planning for their senior lives, develop healthy consumption and saving habits. The "third pillar" in old-age security usually refers to old-age insurance by personal savings and commercial endowment insurance. In some developed countries, this portion accounts for over 1/3 of senior people's incomes. Young people should plan ahead for their senior-age funding, find a balance in the relationship of income, consumption, and savings from the perspective of their full life span, to ensure that they can maintain a certain living standard in their senior age.

Aside from sufficient material preparations, psychological and emotional preparations are also important in senior-age planning. Studies have shown that emotional support from spouse and children, taking care of grandchildren and participating in social activities can also significantly reduce the risk of depression in senior people. Family and kinship are the emotional sustenance of senior people.

The awakening public awareness of senior life has positive effects in solving problems of supporting elderly people in the future. To some extent, the imminent aging society is not dreadful. Technological innovation is the cornerstone of the progress of human society. Intelligent and technological supports of elderly people will have bright prospects in the future.

Contributed by: Yang Ge, Contract Research Fellow, Center for the Study of Xi Jinping Thoughts on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences; Associate Research Fellow, the Institute of Population and Labor Economics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences