Comparative Analysis of Data on Aging in Developing Countries

Organizers: Mary Beth Ofstedal and Albert Hermalin.

The recent emergence of high-quality surveys of older persons in a number of countries spanning several regions of the world has made cross-national analysis of population aging a possibility. An expert panel convened by the National Research Council emphasized the value of cross-national research in one of their major recommendations:

"Cross-national research, organized as a cooperative venture, should be emphasized as a powerful tool that can enhance the ability of policy makers to evaluate institutional and programmatic features of policy related to aging in light of international experience, and to assess more accurately the impact of potential modifications to existing programs." (National Research Council, 2001, pp. 5-6)

While several studies are continuing the comparative analysis carried out in four Asian countries (e.g., Hermalin 2002, the AHA project in Asia; the SABE project in Latin America), to date little work has been attempted on a broad scale within regions or across regions. The primary objective of this network is to expand and bridge these ongoing studies by conducting cross-regional analysis of several topics of key importance to population aging.

The network currently has more than 70 members. Activities have included meetings in connection with PAA (2005), IUSSP (2005) and a "Seminar on Ageing in Developing Countries: Building Bridges for Integrated Research Agendas" (2007, co-organized with Alberto Palloni, Rebeca Wong, Mohammad Nizamuddin).

Hermalin and Ofstedal, in collaboration with several network members, have completed a comparative report on projections of education, marital status and children ever born for the elderly population in 13 developing countries in Asia, Latin America and Africa. This paper was published in a recent volume of Asian Population Studies. (Hermalin, Albert, Mary Beth Ofstedal, and Rebecca Tesfai. "Future Characteristics of the Elderly in Developing Countries and Their Implications for Policy." Asian Population Studies, 3(1): 5-36. 2007). Next in the series is an overview of trends in old-age disability in Asia.