Integrated Research on Aging Policies and Potential Poverty for Senior Citizens in European Welfare States

Main aim of this paper:This paper asks how pension, long-term care and social assistance policies differ and interact in different types of welfare states and how far do they prevent potential poverty in Europe. Pension policy is relevant for financial situation of senior citizens and how they are going on after retirement, long-term care policy is relevant for their resource they have when they are in need of care and social assistance policies is relevant for their payment for the long-term care that they have to pay themselves but are not able to afford in addition to what the state pays. However, these three policy fields interact on their influence on senior citizens’ potential poverty conditions. So far, there was little research about the interaction among these policy fields on impacts of life situation and potential poverty conditions among seniors. Also, cross-national comparative research in this field is rare. The main research question of the planned paper is how pension, long-term care policy and social assistance policies together influence potential poverty among senior citizens in European welfare states. 

Theoretical framework: The theoretical item of aging policy which I use as a concept which combines long-term care policy, pension policy and social assistance policy will be shown in the paper. I define pension, long-term care and social assistance policy together as « aging policy ». I will introduce the findings of a study on aging policies in different types of European welfare states and their impact on potential poverty, and a theoretical typology for aging policies that is based on different ways in which aging policy impact on potential poverty of senior citizens. 

Methodological approach:This paper includes UK, Denmark and Germany on the basis of Esping-Andersen’s welfare regime typology (Esping Andersen, 1990). The aging policies of the three welfare states will be analyzed on the basis of published policy documents and institutional policy studies. The interaction of aging policy with their impacts on prevent, cover or create potential poverty will be included. And how each policy field compensate with each other as well as contribute to the gaps will be shown. 

Contribution to scientific further development: This research will contribute to a broad understanding about the ways in which different types of welfare states aging policies interact on their impact of potential poverty on senior citizens.