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Are the Elderly a Threat to Educational Expenditures?

Author

Listed:
  • Alejandra Cattaneo

    (Socioeconomic Institute, University of Zurich)

  • Stefan C. Wolter

    (Institute of Economics, University of Berne)

Abstract
Empirical research has given cause to fear that the demographic ageing in industrialized countries is likely to exert a negative impact on educational spending. These papers have linked the share of the elderly with the per capita or per pupil spending on education at the local, state-wide or national level, trying to control for other exogenous effects. Although this line of research shows in many cases a negative correlation between the shares of elderly people and educational expenditures, a causal link is difficult to prove. This paper uses a unique and representative survey of Swiss voters of all age groups. The analysis shows that elderly people present a clear tendency to be less willing to spend money on education. They would rather prefer to spend public resources on health and social security than on education. Furthermore the paper shows that much of the negative correlation between the shares of elderly and educational spending is the result of the elderly being politically more conservative and in general less inclined to pay for expenditures in the public sector as a whole.

Suggested Citation

  • Alejandra Cattaneo & Stefan C. Wolter, 2007. "Are the Elderly a Threat to Educational Expenditures?," Economics of Education Working Paper Series 0003, University of Zurich, Department of Business Administration (IBW).
    • Handle: RePEc:iso:educat:0003
    as

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    File URL: http://repec.business.uzh.ch/RePEc/iso/leadinghouse/0003_lhwpaper.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    public finance; education finance; demographics; survey; Switzerland;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H52 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Government Expenditures and Education
    • H72 - Public Economics - - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations - - - State and Local Budget and Expenditures
    • I22 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Educational Finance; Financial Aid
    • J18 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Public Policy

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