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The Life-course Perspective and Social Policies: An Overview of the Issues

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  • A. Lans Bovenberg

Abstract

A number of trends are changing the nature of social risks and increase the importance of human capital, adaptability, and flexibility. This article discusses the usefulness of a life-course perspective in developing proactive social policies that better fit the changing life cycles of individuals who combine formal work with other activities on transitional labor markets. It pays special attention to the accumulation and maintenance of human capital over the life course and stresses that reconciliation of work and family goes beyond child care facilities and parental leave, and involves the entire life course. In particular, longer and deeper involvement in paid employment allows people to exploit their longer life to reconcile the two ambitions of, first, investing in the next generation as a parent and, second, pursuing a fulfilling career in paid work in which one keeps learning. Greater flexibility of working time over the life course requires more individual responsibility for financing leave. Moreover, rather than shielding older insiders through employment protection, labor market institutions should enable parents of young children to easily enter and remain in the labor market. Finally, more activating social assistance and in-work benefits should replace the passive income support for breadwinners that results in high minimum wage floors. (JEL codes: H30, J10, J20) Copyright , Oxford University Press.

Suggested Citation

  • A. Lans Bovenberg, 2008. "The Life-course Perspective and Social Policies: An Overview of the Issues," CESifo Economic Studies, CESifo Group, vol. 54(4), pages 593-641, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:cesifo:v:54:y:2008:i:4:p:593-641
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1093/cesifo/ifn029
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    Cited by:

    1. Lyudmila Vlasyuk I. & Pavel Stroev V. & Л. Власюк И. & П. Строев В., 2017. "Методика определения уровня развития человеческого капитала и его дифференциация в регионах России // A Methodology for Determining the Level of Human Capital Development and its Differentiation in th," Экономика. Налоги. Право // Economics, taxes & law, ФГОБУ "Финансовый университет при Правительстве Российской Федерации" // Financial University under The Government of Russian Federation, vol. 10(4), pages 86-95.
    2. Laura Cavalli & Alessandro Bucciol & Paolo Pertile & Veronica Polin & Nicola Sartor & Alessandro Sommacal, 2012. "Modelling life-course decisions for the analysis of interpersonal and intrapersonal redistribution," Working Papers 25/2012, University of Verona, Department of Economics.
    3. Rainer Eppel & Thomas Leoni, 2011. "New Social Risks Affecting Children. A Survey of Risk Determinants and Child Outcomes in the EU," WIFO Working Papers 386, WIFO.
    4. Marga Peeters & Loek Groot, 2012. "A Global View On Demographic Pressure And Labour Market Participation," Journal of Global Economy, Research Centre for Social Sciences,Mumbai, India, vol. 8(2), pages 165-194, June.
    5. Polin, Veronica & Sartor, Nicola, 2009. "Family Intertemporal Fiscal Incidence: A new Methodology for Assessing Public Policies," MPRA Paper 25570, University Library of Munich, Germany.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • H30 - Public Economics - - Fiscal Policies and Behavior of Economic Agents - - - General
    • J10 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - General
    • J20 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - General

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