Aging & Social Change: Ninth Interdisciplinary Conference

Abstract

The demographic structure of the world population has changed dramatically over the years. For the very first time in the history, statistics demonstrate that most of the people are expected to live until sixties in average. This rapid aging and decline in the fertility rates raise concerns about the negative population momentum. This changing picture of population poses a set of challenges for the national and international policymakers, civil society organizations, and individuals because it necessitates policies aiming to regulate this new social, cultural, economic and political environment. These changes are especially important for the high income countries such as European countries. Theoretical studies illustrate that immigration can come to the forefront as a possible solution. Immigration has the capability to influence the population and labor force dynamics both in the quality and quantity. At this point, the concept of ‘replacement migration’ which means that the expected population deficit and structural problems in the balance of labor force can be replaced by the newcomers who have matching profiles with the needs of the receiver country steps in the process. In this paper, firstly the theoretical discussions about replacement migration are briefly presented. Afterward, the practical part provides examples from case studies, assumptions, projections, and policy recommendations with a special focus on selected European countries and Turkey.