The Long-term Consequences of Migration – Subjective Well-being and Cognitive Abilities of Older Migrants in Europe

Abstract

Migration and population ageing belong to the central challenges for the current and future Europe. Since 1985, the number of inhabitants in European countries who were born outside their country of residence has more than doubled. Besides, already by 2020, a quarter of Europeans will be over 60 years old. Both developments will have substantial impacts on numerous aspects of the European society. Using data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), this volume investigates one of the intersections between migration and ageing by putting the focus on persons aged 50+ who migrated at some point in their life and now grow old abroad. Until now, little is known about the long-term consequences of migration. In the three studies of his thesis, Stefan Gruber investigates in how far migrants are affected by having migrated with regard to two different outcomes: subjective well-being and cognitive functioning.