CHILD DAY CARE, ELDER CARE, AND THEOFFICE OF THE FUTURE
This research examines the implications for the office of the future of child day care and elder care requirements. In this examination, the problem is described, responses and suggested responses to the problem are explained, and the implications for the office of the future are discussed.
The need for child day care and the need for elder care stem from two separate problems. The responsibility for addressing each of the problems, however, most often falls to the same group of people persons employed outside of the home. Thus, responses to each of the problems hold implications for employers for the office.
The average life span in the United States increased from an expected 70 years in 1960 to 79 years in the late 1980s (Bureau of the Census, 1991). The expected life span for women is greater than that for men. Additionally, the expected life span applied to individuals born in the year for which the statistic is determined not for those individuals already in their elderly years. A similar life expectancy increase, however, developed with respect to all age groups in the American population. Between 1970 and 1990, that segment of the population aged 65 years old or older increased more than twice the rate of general population growth. While the 65 and over group is the fastest growing segment of the American population, the 75 and over group is the fastest growing segment among those aged 65 or older. Prior to the 1970s, the 75 and over segment of the population was too small to merit much attention as a separate population segment.
Generally, as individuals live beyond the age of 65 years, they require more care and assistance, whether it is health care services or assistance in daily living. Providing adequate care for the elderly is a growing problem in all parts of the world. While some countries, such as Sweden and the Federal Republic of G...