The Dutch pension system is – still – insufficiently robust. That is what Auping et.al. argue in their recently published journal article, ‘Societal Ageing in the Netherlands: A Robust System Dynamics Approach’, in the peer reviewed journal, Systems Research and Behavioral Science. The researchers looked at the impact of societal ageing on fiscal sustainability in the Netherlands, seeking to answer the question, which set of policy options could keep expenses on both health care and retirement within sustainable bounds, and at the same time be acceptable for the society. They found that if the productivity of the Dutch population does not increase, expenses may become unsustainable. Further, they argue that focusing more on increasing the age at which Dutch employees on average stop working above the formal retirement age, will decrease potential opposition against more rigorous increases in the retirement age.
The research was performed in close cooperation between HCSS and the TU Delft, and builds on earlier research performed by HCSS in cooperation with TNO and the TU Delft (pictured on the left).
The new paper further explores how simulation models can be used for researching ‘messy’, complex and uncertain issues like societal ageing. The paper can be found here.
For further questions, please ask the lead author: willemauping@hcss.nl