Content of [Thoroughly Study and Implement the Spirit of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee: Actively Responding to Population Ageing] in our journal

Published in last 1 year |  In last 2 years |  In last 3 years |  All Please wait a minute... For Selected: Download Citations EndNote Ris BibTeX Toggle Thumbnails Select Population Ageing, Savings Structure Optimization, and Economic Growth Mu Huaizhong, Zhang Dongxue Population Research    2026, 50 (4): 56-71.   Abstract （3841）      PDF （2944KB）（32）       Knowledge map    Save As population ageing deepens in China, promoting economic growth has become an urgent issue. Previous studies have mainly examined its impact on economic growth through changes in aggregate savings or rising pension deficits. Although some studies embed savings and pensions in a unified framework, most still view their relationship as merely a substitution mechanism in old-age security, paying insufficient attention to differences in allocation structure and efficiency, as well as their broader implications for long-term economic growth. Against this background, this paper incorporates the three-pillar pension system into a general equilibrium overlapping-generations model and constructs an indicator of the pension-savings conversion rate. Using numerical simulation, it investigates how savings are transformed into pensions under population ageing, identifies the optimal scheme and parameter combinations, and evaluates the adaptability and relative advantages of different schemes. The conclusions are as follows. First, population ageing affects economic growth not mainly by changing aggregate savings, but by impeding the effective conversion of savings into pensions and thereby weakening capital formation. Second, the three-pillar coordinated Scheme P4 is the optimal choice for coping with the ageing shock and sustaining long-term economic growth. The results further suggest that the current parameter settings of China's first and second pillars are broadly appropriate, whereas the third pillar still has room for improvement. The theoretically optimal parameters for the third pillar are an annual contribution ceiling of RMB 19336 and a tax rate of 2.31% on pension benefit withdrawals. Third, simulations of future ageing scenarios show that if the system continues to rely heavily on the first pillar, which is dominated by pay-as-you-go (PAYG) financing, China's basic pension insurance system will face an unsustainable contribution burden. As population ageing intensifies, a transition from PAYG financing toward funded pillars is therefore necessary. Based on these findings, future reforms should accelerate the development of the second and third pillars while maintaining the basic protection function of the first pillar. Priority should be given to improving contribution incentives, tax preferences, and account portability mechanisms for the third pillar, and to broadening the conversion of savings into pension capital through pension financial product innovation, thereby strengthening the supply of long-term capital. The pension system should also be better coordinated with medical insurance and long-term care insurance to reduce precautionary savings driven by health and care risks. The marginal contributions of this study are twofold. First, it extends the existing framework, which has largely focused on the first-pillar basic pension system, by incorporating the three-pillar pension system into a general equilibrium overlapping-generations model and constructing an indicator of the pension savings conversion rate. This enables the paper to examine the mechanism through which population ageing affects economic growth from the perspective of savings structure optimization. Second, this paper moves beyond the social security function of the pension system and reconceptualizes it as an instrument for improving the pension savings conversion rate, thereby identifying the reform scheme and parameter combinations that maximize the growth-enhancing effect of savings conversion. Reference | Related Articles | Metrics Select Consumption Structure and Its Determinants of the Empty-nest Elderly in Rural and Urban Areas in China Wu Haixia, Su Jie, Wu Fan Population Research    2026, 50 (4): 72-87.   Abstract （3804）      PDF （1270KB）（29）       Knowledge map    Save Consumption plays a foundational role in economic development, and enhancing resident consumption is one of the key pathways to promote stable growth in consumption. According to the Seventh National Population Census, the proportion of empty-nest elderly households in China reached 43.55%, corresponding to approximately 145 million empty-nest elderly individuals. It is estimated that by 2030, the number of urban and rural empty-nest elderly will rise to 200 million. As the population of empty-nest elderly continues to grow, their consumption will exert an increasingly significant influence on the development of the resident consumption market. This paper defines empty-nest elderly as single-living elderly and elderly couples whose children do not live with them, and divides the consumption structure of the elderly into four categories: basic living consumption, medical consumption, developmental consumption, and enjoyment consumption. Using five waves of data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) covering 2011 to 2020, this study systematically analyzes the development trend of consumption structure and its influencing factors for empty-nest elderly in urban and rural areas in China. In order to distinguish individual consumption from household consumption, this study first employs the least squares method, following the analytical frameworks of Mankiw and Weil (1989) as well as Mi and Ren (2014), controlling for household size and structure, age composition of household members, and household income to estimate individual consumption expenditures for elderly couples living without children and the elderly co-residing with family members. Second, the Hierarchical Age-Period-Cohort (HAPC) model is applied to analyze the changing trends in consumption structures among urban and rural empty-nest elderly. Finally, the Fractional Probit regression model is utilized to examine the determinants influencing the consumption structure of the empty-nest elderly. The result reveals that the consumption structure of urban and rural empty-nest elderly shows significant age, period, and cohort trends. Young-old and oldest-old empty-nest elderly have higher basic living consumption and lower medical consumption, and middle-old elderly have lower basic living consumption and higher medical consumption. Over the long term, the basic living consumption of the empty-nest elderly has decreased, while developmental consumption and enjoyment consumption have increased. And the medical consumption of the elderly couples and urban single-living elderly has decreased, while the medical consumption of rural single-living elderly has increased. Empty-nest elderly from earlier birth cohorts have higher basic living consumption and lower medical consumption; urban empty-nest elderly couples from later birth cohorts have higher developmental consumption, while the cohort difference in developmental consumption among rural empty-nest elderly is minimal. The age effect of developmental and enjoyment consumption, and the cohort effect of enjoyment consumption among empty-nest elderly are not significant. The economic ability, health status, social security, cognitive ability, and internet ability of empty-nest elderly all have significant impacts on their consumption structure through the social participation path. The study suggests that increasing the economic income, advocating emphasis on disease prevention and health management, expanding social participation, advancing age-friendly internet adaptation, and devoting to strength digital skills training for the elderly will help improve and upgrade the consumption structure of empty-nest elderly. Reference | Related Articles | Metrics Select How Does Age-Friendly Home Renovation Affect the Health of Older Adults? Evidence from CLASS Sheng Yi'nan, Zhang Meng, Wang Lianqiu Population Research    2026, 50 (4): 88-102.   Abstract （3701）      PDF （1226KB）（52）       Knowledge map    Save With the deepening of China's population ageing, the prevalence of chronic diseases and disability among older adults is rising. How to delay the disability and improve the health status of the elderly has become social issues. Data from China's Seventh National Population Census show that in 2020, over 95% of older adults chose home-based elderly care. However, the existing residential buildings in China exhibit insufficient age-friendly home renovation due to outdated building standards and suboptimal spatial planning from earlier periods. To address this issue, China issued the Guiding Opinions on Accelerating the Implementation of Age-Friendly Home Renovation Projects for the Elderly, aiming to improve the quality and capacity of home-based elderly care services by promoting the age-friendly home renovation. However, whether it can effectively promote elderly health still requires further empirical verification. Based on the data of China Longitudinal Aging Social Survey (CLASS) from 2018 to 2023, this study adopts the two-way fixed effect model to empirically examine the impact, potential mechanism, heterogeneity, and synergistic effect with smart devices of age-friendly home renovation on older adults' health. Grounded in the ICF framework, the study reveals the health-promoting pathways of age-friendly home renovation from physical, social, and psychological dimensions, and its synergistic effect with smart elderly care devices. This study provides practical references for promoting the construction of age-friendly home renovation, developing smart home-based elderly care services, and improving the building of age-friendly environments, thus possessing important theoretical and practical implications. The findings indicate that age-friendly home renovation not only reduces the degree of disability among older adults but also alleviates the level of depressive symptoms. Mechanism analysis reveals that age-friendly home renovation promotes older adults' health by reducing the risk of falls and social isolation, as well as by promoting positive age identity. Heterogeneity analysis reveals stronger health-promoting effects among older adults aged 75 and above, those in empty-nest households, and those in rural areas. Moderation effect results show that smart devices positively moderate the relationship between age-friendly home renovation and older adults' health. Based on these findings, this study proposes policy recommendations including improving the quality and health benefits of age-friendly home renovation, implementing stratified and targeted renovation strategies, and advancing the deep integration of age-friendly home renovation with smart elderly care. This study goes beyond previous policy evaluations that primarily focused on community public environments, shifting the unit of analysis to the home environment and examining the health effects of age-friendly home renovation from the perspective of physical and mental health, thereby addressing the limitations in existing research that has paid insufficient attention to the health impacts of family physical spaces. By constructing a systematic pathway across physical, social, and psychological environmental dimensions, this study extends age-friendly home renovation from the traditional “competence-press” fit model toward a new “resource-empowerment” perspective. Furthermore, by incorporating smart devices into the person-environment interaction framework, this study not only expands the analytical framework of person-tool-environment interaction within ecological theory of ageing but also enhances the explanatory power and application value of this theory in the context of smart elderly care. Reference | Related Articles | Metrics Select Impacts of Internet Use on Reemployment Willingness and Behavior of Retired Older Adults in the Digital Era Li Jingbo, Li Yi Population Research    2026, 50 (4): 103-118.   Abstract （3449）      PDF （1237KB）（28）       Knowledge map    Save Against the backdrop of persistently low fertility rates, China has entered a sustained stage of population decline. The traditional demographic dividend is gradually diminishing, and the old-age dependency ratio is rising. Leveraging and developing older adults as human resources has become a key measure for implementing the strategy of actively responding to population ageing. The widespread adoption of the internet presents both new opportunities and challenges for developing these resources. Using data from the Survey on Digital Division and Inclusion of Older Adults in China, this study selects retired males aged 60 and above and retired females aged 55 and above as its research subjects. The study systematically examines the impact of internet use on their reemployment willingness and behavior and its underlying mechanisms. The findings reveal that internet use significantly increases the reemployment willingness among retired older adults who have not returned to work. However, its effect on actual reemployment behavior is not statistically significant. This suggests that the role of internet in promoting reemployment among the older adults is primarily reflected at the level of willingness and has not effectively translated into actual labor force participation. Further cluster analysis based on the functions and duration of retired older adults' internet use identifies three distinct types of internet users, such as video entertainment pattern, social communication pattern, and deep-use pattern. The results show that the reliance on social communication and deep internet use significantly enhances reemployment willingness, whereas usage focused on video entertainment has no significant impact. Mechanism analysis indicates that access to online job information and the expansion of social networks partially mediate the impact of digital inclusion on retirees' reemployment willingness. Heterogeneity analysis reveals that the effect of internet use is more pronounced among retirees formerly employed outside the state sector, low-income retirees, and female retirees. The contributions of this study are threefold. First, by distinguishing between reemployment willingness and behavior, it reveals the unique characteristic of “willingness enhancement but insufficient behavior conversion” regarding the influence of internet use on retirees' reemployment. Second, it demonstrates that the effect of the internet depends not merely on access, but crucially on the content and depth of digital use and the extent of digital inclusion. Internet uses oriented toward social communication, information accessibility, and learning applications are more conducive to enhancing retirees' perception of job opportunities and confidence in reemployment. Third, the study explores the mechanisms of reemployment promotion through two dimensions: obtaining online recruitment information and expanding social networks. It further identifies its differentiated effects across groups with varying resource endowments and employment constraints. The study suggests the need to shift the focus of older adults' human resource development from increasing internet access to improving the quality of digital inclusion. This includes establishing an age-friendly reemployment information service system and providing targeted support for older adults outside the state sector, those with low incomes, women, and those with low levels of digital inclusion, thereby facilitating the transition from reemployment willingness to actual labor participation. Reference | Related Articles | Metrics