Professor Alan Walker (he/him)
CBE, DLitt, Hon DSocSc (HKBU), FBA, FRSA, FASS, FGSA
Department of Sociological Studies
Professor of Social Policy and Social Gerontology
Previously Director of the New Dynamics of Ageing Programme
Co-Director of the Healthy Lifespan Institute
a.c.walker@sheffield.ac.uk
+44 114 222 6466
+44 114 222 6466
The Wave
Full contact details
Professor Alan Walker
Department of Sociological Studies
The Wave
2 Whitham Road
Sheffield
S10 2AH
Department of Sociological Studies
The Wave
2 Whitham Road
Sheffield
S10 2AH
- Profile
-
Alan Walker joined the Department in 1977 and was a Lecturer, Senior Lecturer and Reader in Social Policy. He was appointed Professor of Social Policy in 1985 and was Head of Department from 1988 to 1996.
He directed the £22 million New Dynamics of Ageing Research Programme funded by five UK Research Councils (2005-15), the £6.5 million Mobilising the Potential of Active Ageing in Europe (2013-17) and the £3.5 million ESRC Growing Older Programme (1999-2004).
Previously he directed the UK National Collaboration on Ageing Research, the European Research Area in Ageing and several large European projects, including FUTURAGE which set out a road map for the future of ageing research.
He supervises postgraduate students and has more than 60 successful completions. He was previously Research Director for the Social Sciences Faculty.
He has held many official advisory positions and is currently a member of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Longevity's Strategic Advisory Board.
- Research interests
-
Alan's research interests span a wide range in social analysis, social policy and social planning. He is a specialist in social gerontology and, with two colleagues in the Netherlands, is responsible for developing the concept of social quality and he Chairs the European Foundation on Social Quality, which is based in Amsterdam. He co-founded and co-directs Sheffield University’s Healthy Lifespan Institute.
Currently he is the UK partner on the four-nation comparative project Extending Working Lives and Inequality and Co-Investigator on the ESRC project Ethnicity and Unequal Ageing. He has published more than 30 books, over 200 reports and more than 300 papers in scholarly journals and edited volumes. His work has been published in more than 20 languages.
He is a founding Academician of the Academy for Learned Societies in the Social Sciences, a Fellow of the British Academy and, in 2007, was given lifetime achievement awards by both the British Society of Gerontology and the Social Policy Association.
He has been active in the UK voluntary sector for many years and co-founded the Disability Alliance in 1974. He is currently Patron of the National Pensioner's Convention and Greater London Forum for Older People.
Research topics
Quality of later life
- Director of the ESRC Growing Older Research Programme on Extending Quality Life (1999-2004).
- The twin objectives of the programme were to establish a broad-based multidisciplinary and co-ordinated research programme designed to generate new knowledge on the extension of quality life; and to contribute to the development of policies and practices in the field and, thereby, help to extend quality life.
- The research topics covered by the programme were defining and measuring quality of life, inequalities in quality of life, the role of technology and the built environment, healthy and productive ageing, family and support networks and participation and activity in later life.
Developing multi-disciplinary research on ageing
- Director of the New Dynamics of Ageing Research Programme (2005-2015)
- This multi-disciplinary research programme was sponsored by the ESRC, EPSRC, BBSRC, MRC and AHRC. For further information see http://www.shef.ac.uk/newdynamics
Developing European collaboration in ageing research
- Director of the European Forum on Population Ageing Research (2002-2004)
- Director of FUTURAGE: The European Road Map for Ageing Research (2009-2011).
- For further information see http://futurage.group.shef.ac.uk/
- Director of the European Research Area in Ageing (2004 - 2012)
- For further information see http://www.shef.ac.uk/era-age
- Director of the UK National Collaboration on Ageing Research (2000-2004)
- The objectives of the NCAR were to stimulate new multi-disciplinary research groups in the field of ageing; to develop a new cross-Research Council approach to research on ageing with an explicit interdisciplinary theme; to encourage stronger links between research and policy and practice in the ageing field; and to develop the European dimension of ageing research in the UK.
Comparative research on social policy
- This mainly focuses on the welfare regimes of the Member States of the European Union and the social policy competencies of the European Commission. Convenor of the European Social Policy Research Network formed under the European Sociological Association and co-founder of ESPAnet.
Development and testing the concept of 'social quality'
- This is designed to provide an independent rationale for social policy in Europe. The concept comprises social inclusion/exclusion, social cohesion/anomie, socio-economic security/insecurity, and social empowerment/subordination.
- A European Foundation exists to co-ordinate this work, with members in all EU countries and with links to the European Commission. Chair of this European Foundation on Social Quality which is based in Amsterdam.
- For further information see http://www.socialquality.org
Social gerontology
- This research covers a broad field and includes theoretical work on the social construction of old age and the relationship between ageing and welfare/social policy.
- empirical research on the social relationships of old age
- attitudes towards ageing and socio-economic security in old age
- policy evaluations in the areas of pensions and long-term care and comparative research on the impact of societal ageing in both Europe and East Asia and the politics of old age.
Age and employment
- This research covers the impact of ageing workforces, age discrimination in the labour market, labour market policies on older workers, employers' responses to workforce ageing and good practice in the employment of older workers.
- He was responsible for the first European research of actions to overcome age barriers in employment, covering seven EU countries and has co-led the development of a European Code of Good Practice on age and employment.
Chinese and East Asian welfare
- This is a long-standing interest in the welfare systems of East Asia and China - including many PhD students from Hong Kong, China, Japan, and Taiwan - and the Confucian, family oriented, ideology.
- This research includes comparative work on models of welfare east and west.
Older people with learning difficulties/ intellectual disabilities and their carers
- Having conducted (with Carol Walker) the first major study in the UK on older people with learning difficulties, this represents ongoing research programme covering the distribution of health and social services, user involvement, human rights, the principle of normalisation and the problems encountered by older carers.
Social exclusion/ inclusion
- This is a long-standing interest in poverty and inequality, which has recently been amalgamated into the research on social quality (see above).
- Research concentrates on the dimensions of social exclusion, measuring exclusion and its impact, the meaning of poverty and the lives of those experiencing it.
- This research includes European and local community dimensions.
Empowerment
- This research is largely subsumed under that on social quality and social gerontology but also includes a general interest in ideas of empowerment and the mechanisms by which citizens can be involved actively in decision making and research.
Intergenerational relations
- As well as general interests in social policy and ageing there are specific interests in relations between the generations both at a macro level (the social contract) and, at a micro level, within families.
- Publications
-
Books
- The Future of Ageing in Europe. Springer Singapore.
- The new dynamics of ageing.
- Preface.
- Preface. IEEE.
- Social Quality: From Theory to Indicators. Palgrave Macmillan.
- Fighting poverty, inequality and injustice: A manifesto inspired by Peter Townsend.
- Preface. IEEE.
- Social Policy in Ageing Societies: Britain and Germany Compared. Palgrave MacMillan.
- Securing the Future for Old Age in Europe.
- Preface.
- East Asian welfare regimes in transition: From confucianism to globalisation.
- The Caring Relationship. Macmillan Education UK.
- Unqualified and Underemployed. Macmillan Education UK.
- Introduction. Bristol University Press.
- Preface. Bristol University Press.
- Preface. Bristol University Press.
Edited books
- Joyce’s Non-Fiction Writings: 'Outside His Jurisfiction'. Cham: Palgrave Macmillan.
- Death and Social Policy in Challenging Times. Palgrave Macmillan.
- Comparative Social Quality Between Taiwan and Korea. Tapei: National Taiwan University Press.
- Active Ageing in Asia. Oxford: Routledge.
- The New Science of Ageing. Policy Press.
- The Political Economy of Ageing and Later Life: Critical Perspectives. Edward Elgar Publishing.
- Fighting Poverty, Inequality and Injustice. Policy Press.
- Social Quality: From Theory to Indicators. Palgrave Macmillan.
- The Peter Townsend Reader. Policy Press.
Journal articles
- Foreword. A Research Agenda for Ageing and Social Policy, xv-xvi.
- Introduction: THE CASE FOR A CRITICAL GERONTOLOGY. Social Gerontology: New Directions, 1-15.
- THE PERSISTENCE OF AGE DISCRIMINATION IN SHAPING LATE WORKING LIVES. Innovation in Aging, 7(Supplement_1), 544-545.
- Adult children and older people's demand for community care services in urban China. Australasian Journal on Ageing.
- Foreword by Alan Walker. Covid-19 Pandemic: Problems Arising in Health and Social Policy, vii-ix.
- The Chinese System of Community Care for Older Adults. Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 48(6), 7-11.
- Reconciling for-profit social service provision with a regulatory framework: Korean long-term care. International Journal of Care and Caring.
- Active Ageing across the Life Course: Towards a Comprehensive Approach to Prevention. BioMed Research International, 2021, 1-11.
- Obstacles to regulating the private sector: The case of Korean long-term care. Asian Social Work and Policy Review.
- Understanding unequal ageing: towards a synthesis of intersectionality and life course analyses. European Journal of Ageing.
- The relationship between the multilevel state and NGOs in China: the case of social work organizations. Journal of Asian Public Policy, 13(2), 129-145.
- Pensions and social inclusion in an ageing China. Ageing & Society, 39(7), 1335-1339. View this article in WRRO
- Introduction: European Social Policy and Society after Brexit: Neoliberalism, Populism, and Social Quality. Social Policy and Society, 18(1), 87-91.
- The Post-Brexit Declaration on Social Quality in Europe. Social Policy and Society, 18(1), 161-167.
- Between Neoliberalism and Nationalist Populism: What Role for the ‘European Social Model’ and Social Quality in Post-Brexit Europe?. Social Policy and Society. View this article in WRRO
- Older people and Social Quality – what difference does income make?. Ageing & Society. View this article in WRRO
- Social Quality and Health: Examining Individual and Neighbourhood Contextual Effects Using a Multilevel Modelling Approach. Social Indicators Research, 138(1), 245-270. View this article in WRRO
- Why the UK Needs a Social Policy on Ageing. Journal of Social Policy, 47(2), 253-273. View this article in WRRO
- The gap in social care provision for older people in China. Asian Social Work and Policy Review, 12(1), 17-28.
- Pension system reform in China: Who gets what pensions?. Social Policy & Administration. View this article in WRRO
- From cradle to grave?: policy responses to death in the UK. Mortality. View this article in WRRO
- SOCIAL INNOVATIONS IN THEORY AND PRACTICE. Innovation in Aging, 1(suppl_1), 1327-1327.
- REALISING ACTIVE AGEING IN EUROPE. Innovation in Aging, 1(suppl_1), 687-687.
- REALISING THE POTENTIAL OF ACTIVE AGEING IN EUROPE. Innovation in Aging, 1(suppl_1), 686-686.
- THE MOPACT PROJECT. Innovation in Aging, 1(suppl_1), 686-686.
- BUILDING INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH CAPACITY: LESSONS FROM THE INTERNATIONAL SUMMER SCHOOLS ON AGING. Innovation in Aging, 1(suppl_1), 104-104.
- SOCIAL INNOVATIONS IN ACTIVE AND HEALTHY AGEING. Innovation in Aging, 1(suppl_1), 1327-1327.
- ASSESSING THE ABILITY OF SOCIAL INNOVATIONS TO INCREASE HEALTHY LIFE YEARS. Innovation in Aging, 1(suppl_1), 1327-1327.
- The need for community care among older people in China. Ageing and Society, 36(6), 1312-1332. View this article in WRRO
- New Evidence on Active Ageing in Europe. Intereconomics, 51(3), 139-144.
- Promoting fairness in Sheffield. Local Economy, 31(4), 478-488. View this article in WRRO
- Ageing in Europe. Intereconomics, 51(3), 112-112.
- Social Quality and Work: What Impact Does Low Pay Have on Social Quality?. Journal of Social Policy, 45(2), 345-371. View this article in WRRO
- “Full-time wife” and the change of gender order in the Chinese City. The Journal of Chinese Sociology, 2(1). View this article in WRRO
- Active ageing: realising its potential. Australas J Ageing, 34(1), 2-8. View this article in WRRO
- Active and Successful Aging: A European Policy Perspective.. Gerontologist, 55(1), 83-90. View this article in WRRO
- The Big Society in China: A Failed Experiment - ERRATUM. Social Policy and Society, 13(2), 319-319.
- Eric Sainsbury, 16 December 1925 to 11 March 2014. Practice, 26(3), 195-197.
- The big society: Rediscovery of ‘the social’ or rhetorical fig-leaf for neo-liberalism?. Critical Social Policy, 33(3), 451-472.
- Announcements. Journal of Educational Administration, 51(4).
- The 2012 Outstanding Doctoral Research Award: Educational Leadership and Strategy. Journal of Educational Administration, 51(2).
- The Big Society in China: A Failed Experiment. Social Policy and Society, 12(1), 17-30.
- Active Aging: A Global Goal. Current Gerontology and Geriatrics Research, 2013, 1-4.
- FUTURAGE: Creating a road map for ageing research. European Geriatric Medicine, 3, S100-S101.
- Editorial. Journal of Educational Administration, 50(4).
- Changing of the guard. Journal of Educational Administration, 50(2).
- Active ageing: A strategic policy solution to demographic ageing in the European Union. International Journal of Social Welfare.
- The New Ageism. POLITICAL QUARTERLY, 83(4), 812-819.
- The big society: Back to the future. Political Quarterly, 83(3), 487-493.
- Promoting multi-disciplinary and inter-disciplinary ageing research in the United Kingdom. Ageing and Society, 31(1), 52-69.
- Relations between the generations: Uniting the macro and the micro. Journal of Intergenerational Relationships, 8(4), 425-430.
- The Impact of Neo-liberalism on South Korea's Public Pension: A Political Economy of Pension Reform. Social Policy and Administration: an international journal of policy and research, 43(5), 425-444.
- Peter Townsend (1928-2009). Ageing and Society, 29, 1007-1013.
- European perspectives on quality of life in old age. European Journal of Ageing, 6(2), 61-66.
- The relationship between social policy and economic policy: constructing the public burden of wefare in China and the West. Development and Society, 38(1), 1-26.
- Active ageing in Europe: Policy discourses and initiatives. Assistive Technology Research Series, 23, 35-48.
- Commentary: the emergence and application of active aging in Europe. Journal of Aging & Social Policy, 21(1), 75-93.
- Alan Walker: At last, a housing strategy for an ageing population. POLICY POLIT, 36(4), 612-613.
- Why involve older people in research?. AGE AGEING, 36(5), 481-483.
- From Chinese model to U.S. symptoms: the paradox of China's health system.. Int J Health Serv, 37(4), 651-672.
- Extending quality life: Policy prescriptions from the Growing Older Programme. J SOC POLICY, 35, 437-454.
- Programa británico de investigación para el incremento de la calidad de vida en la vejez. Revista Española de Geriatría y Gerontología, 41, 49-56.
- Active ageing in employment: Its meaning and potential. Asia-Pacific Review, 13(1), 78-93.
- Caught between virtue and ideological necessity. A century of pension policies in the UK. Review of Political Economy, 18(3), 427-448.
- A European perspective on quality of life in old age. European Journal of Ageing, 2(1), 2-12.
- 25th volume celebration paper. Towards an international political economy of ageing. Ageing and Society, 25(6), 815-839.
- The ESRC Growing Older research programme, 1999-2004. AGEING SOC, 24, 657-674.
- The Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing: from conception to implementation. AGEING SOC, 24, 147-165.
- Quality of life of older people. European comparisons. Revista Espanola de Geriatria y Gerontologia, 39(SUPPL. 3), 8-17.
- Extending quality of life. Nursing and Residential Care, 5(7), 345-345.
- Futuros retos de la política social europea sobre personas mayores. Revista Española de Geriatría y Gerontología, 37(6), 334-341.
- The politics of intergenerational relations.. Z Gerontol Geriatr, 35(4), 297-303.
- Ageing in Europe: policies in harmony or discord?. Int J Epidemiol, 31(4), 758-761.
- The ESRC Growing Older Research Programme. Social Policy and Society, 1(2), 129-138.
- Editorial. Quality in Ageing and Older Adults, 3(1), 2-3.
- A strategy for active ageing. International Social Security Review, 55(1), 121-139.
- Growing Older: An ESRC research programme. Quality in Ageing and Older Adults, 3(1), 4-12.
- La vieillesse est une expérience non homogène. Retraite et Societe, 37(3), 234-239.
- Research for an ageing society.. Clin Med (Lond), 1(4), 305-306.
- Public policy and the construction of old age in Europe.. Gerontologist, 40(3), 304-308.
- Researching quality of life in old age. Quality in Ageing and Older Adults, 1(1), 8-14.
- Ageing in Europe – challenges and consequences. Zeitschrift für Gerontologie und Geriatrie, 32(6), 390-397.
- Good practice in the employment of older workers in Europe. Ageing International, 25(3), 62-79.
- Introduction (part II). Ageing International, 25(3), 10-13.
- Ageing in Europe--challenges and consequences.. Z Gerontol Geriatr, 32(6), 390-397.
- Combating age discrimination at the workplace.. Exp Aging Res, 25(4), 367-377.
- Contributors. European Journal of Social Quality, 1(1-2).
- The Future of Pensions and Retirement in Europe: Towards Productive Ageing. Geneva Papers on Risk and Insurance: Issues and Practice, 24(4), 448-460.
- The third way for pensions (by way of Thatcherism and avoiding today's pensioners). Critical Social Policy, 19(4), 511-527.
- Employers and older workers: attitudes and employment practices. AGEING SOC, 18, 641-658.
- Transition from school to adult life for physically disabled young people.. Arch Dis Child, 79(4), 306-311.
- Leaving paediatrics: the experience of service transition for young disabled people and their family carers.. Health Soc Care Community, 6(4), 260-270.
- Normalisation and 'normal' ageing: the social construction of dependency among older people with learning difficulties. DISABIL SOC, 13(1), 125-142.
- Policies and practices towards older workers: a framework for comparative research. Human Resource Management Journal, 8(3), 61-76.
- Age or disability? Age-based disparities in service provision for older people with intellectual disabilities in Great Britain. Journal of Intellectual and Developmental Disability, 23(1), 25-39.
- The Amsterdam declaration on the social quality of Europe. European Journal of Social Work, 1(1), 109-111.
- Age discrimination and public policy. PERS REV, 26(4), 307-&.
- Consumerism versus empowerment: A principled approach to the involvement of older service users. POLICY POLIT, 24(4), 375-393.
- Older people with learning difficulties leaving institutional care - A case of double jeopardy. AGEING SOC, 16, 125-150.
- Rethinking the western construction of the welfare state.. Int J Health Serv, 26(1), 67-92.
- Managing an Ageing Workforce in Britain and France. The Geneva Papers on Risk and Insurance - Issues and Practice, 21(4), 478-501.
- New publications. Ageing International, 22(4), 59-65.
- OECD, New Orientations for Social Policy. OECD, Paris, 1994. 129 pp. paper £19. - P. Hennessy (ed.). Caring for Frail Elderly People: New Directions in Care, OECD, Paris, 1994, 143 pp., paper £20.. Journal of Social Policy, 24(4), 575-577.
- Combating age discrimination in employment: Education versus legislation. Policy Studies, 16(3), 52-61.
- Combatting age barriers in job recruitment and training. Policy Studies, 16(1), 4-13.
- THE FUTURE OF LONG-TERM-CARE IN CANADA - A BRITISH PERSPECTIVE. CAN J AGING, 14(2), 437-446.
- The Ageing Workforce: Employers' Attitudes towards Older People. Work, Employment and Society, 8(4), 569-591.
- Pensions and living standards in the European community. Ageing International, 20(4), 7-14.
- Dealing with age discrimination in England: The merits of education vs. legislation. Ageing International, 20(3), 36-40.
- Under new management: the changing role of the state in the care of older people in the United Kingdom.. J Aging Soc Policy, 5(1-2), 127-154.
- Book Reviews. Age and Ageing, 21(2), 151-152.
- The persistence of poverty under welfare states and the prospects for its abolition.. Int J Health Serv, 22(1), 1-17.
- THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE FAMILY AND THE STATE IN THE CARE OF OLDER-PEOPLE. CAN J AGING, 10(2), 94-112.
- The economic ‘burden’ of ageing and the prospect of intergenerational conflict. Ageing and Society, 10(4), 377-396.
- Ageing and The Social Sciences: the North American Way. Ageing and Society, 7(2), 235-241.
- Enlarging the Caring Capacity of the Community: Informal Support Networks and the Welfare State. International Journal of Health Services, 17(3), 369-386.
- commentary two. Critical Social Policy, 4(11), 103-110.
- Labour's social plans: the limits of welfare statism *. Critical Social Policy, 3(8), 45-65.
- The Social Production of Old Age. Ageing and Society, 3(3), 387-395.
- Adam Graycar and David Kinnear, The Aged and the State, A Working Paper, Social Welfare Research Centre, University of New South Wales, 041981, 119 pp., unpriced, ISBN 85823 202 2.. Ageing and Society, 2(1), 147-148.
- Housing and Social Justice/The Elderly in Modern Society (Book).. Sociology of Health and Illness, 4(2), 232-232.
- Dependency and Old Age. Social Policy & Administration, 16(2), 115-135.
- THE SOCIAL CONSEQUENCES OF EARLY RETIREMENT. The Political Quarterly, 53(1), 61-72.
- Assessing the severity of disability for the allocation of benefits and services. International Social Security Review, 34(3), 274-291.
- Towards a Political Economy of Old Age. Ageing and Society, 1(1), 73-94.
- Book Review: Social Work, Welfare and the State. Sociology, 15(1), 134-136.
- The Industrial Preference in State Compensation for Industrial Injury and Disease. Social Policy & Administration, 15(1), 54-71.
- SOUTH YORKSHIRE: THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL IMPACT OF UNEMPLOYMENT. The Political Quarterly, 52(1), 74-87.
- Social Policy, Social Administration and the Social Construction of Welfare. Sociology, 15(2), 225-250.
- COMMUNITY CARE AND THE ELDERLY IN GREAT-BRITAIN - THEORY AND PRACTICE. INT J HEALTH SERV, 11(4), 541-557.
- The handicapped school leaver and the transition to work. British Journal of Guidance & Counselling, 8(2), 212-223.
- The Social Creation of Poverty and Dependency in Old Age. Journal of Social Policy, 9(1), 49-75.
- Vida Carver and Michael Rodda, Disability and the Environment, Schocken Books, New York, 1978. xii+123 pp. $13.50.. Journal of Social Policy, 8(4), 575-576.
- Robert O. Coppedge and Charlton G. Davis (eds), Rural Poverty and the Policy Crisis, Iowa State University Press, Iowa, 1977. xi + 220 pp. $9.50.. Journal of Social Policy, 7(3), 383-384.
- Public spending must not be made industry's scapegoat. Health and Social Service Journal, 84(4516), 2022-2024.
- Why China needs an active social policy on ageing. Asian Population Studies, 1-16.
- The impact of community care services on the preference for ageing in place in urban China. Health & Social Care in the Community.
- Trabalhadores mais Velhos e Envelhecimento Ativo na Europa. Estudos Interdisciplinares sobre o Envelhecimento, 8.
- A step in the right direction: people with learning difficulties moving into the community. Health & Social Care in the Community, 3(4), 249-260.
Chapters
- South Yorkshire: The Economic and Social Impact of Unemployment, Unemployment (pp. 74-87).
- Discursive change from ‘early’ towards ‘late’ exit/retirement, Rapidly Increasing Retirement Ages (pp. 16-39). Edward Elgar Publishing
- THE POLITICS OF AGEING IN BRITAIN*, Dependency and Interdependency in Old Age: Theoretical Perspectives and Policy Alternatives (pp. 30-45).
- Care for elderly people, A Labour of Love (pp. 106-128). Routledge
- The political economy of privatisation, Routledge Library Editions: Welfare and the State (pp. 19-44).
- Population ageing and social policies in China: Challenges and opportunities, The Routledge Handbook of Chinese Studies (pp. 191-204).
- Ageing sustainably, The Struggle for Social Sustainability: Moral Conflicts in Global Social Policy (pp. 155-175).
- Active Ageing and Quality of Life, Handbook of Active Ageing and Quality of Life (pp. 253-270). Springer International Publishing
- Conclusion – Policy Priorities from EXTEND, Alte und neue soziale Ungleichheiten bei Berufsaufgabe und Rentenübergang (pp. 245-250). Springer Fachmedien Wiesbaden
- The Promise of Active Aging, The Cambridge Handbook of Successful Aging (pp. 557-569). Cambridge University Press
- Community Care and the Elderly in Great Britain: Theory and Practice, Readings in the Political Economy of Aging (pp. 75-93). Routledge
- Introduction, The Future of Ageing in Europe (pp. 1-28). Springer Singapore
- Strategies of Active Ageing in Europe, The Future of Ageing in Europe (pp. 29-52). Springer Singapore
- Conclusion: Realising Active Ageing, The Future of Ageing in Europe (pp. 309-328). Springer Singapore
- Ageing and social justice, Handbook on Global Social Justice (pp. 213-227).
- Introduction In Ebury K & Fraser J (Ed.), Joyce’s Non-Fiction Writings: Outside His Jurisfiction (pp. 1-28). Palgrave Macmillan
- Conclusion, The New Dynamics of Ageing (pp. 347-357).
- Reforming pensions, Social Policy Reform in China: Views from Home and Abroad (pp. 143-154).
- Putting 'the social' back into social policy, Building better societies: Promoting social justice in a world falling apart (pp. 111-124).
- The new politics of old age, New Dynamics in Old Age: Individual, Environmental and Societal Perspectives (pp. 307-324).
- Forward: A Good Death for All? In Foster L & Woodthorpe K (Ed.), Death and Social Policy in Challenging Times Springer
- Responding to the challenge of global ageing – a critical approach to active ageing, Teilhabe im Alter gestalten (pp. 501-518). Springer Fachmedien Wiesbaden
- Population Ageing from a Global and Theoretical Perspective: European Lessons on Active Ageing, International Perspectives on Aging (pp. 47-64). Springer International Publishing
- Age-Friendly Cities and Communities in International Comparison Springer International Publishing
- Foreword (pp. viii-x).
- AGEING THROUGH AUSTERITY Critical perspectives from Ireland Foreword, AGEING THROUGH AUSTERITY: CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES FROM IRELAND (pp. VIII-X).
- A new policy perspective on ageing, The new science of ageing (pp. 240-260). Policy Press
- Towards a new science of ageing, The New Science of Ageing (pp. 1-23).
- Introduction, Active Ageing in Asia (pp. 1-13).
- COUNTRYSIDE CONNECTIONS Older people, community and place in rural Britain Foreword, COUNTRYSIDE CONNECTION: OLDER PEOPLE, COMMUNITY AND PLACE IN RURAL BRITAIN (pp. XV-XV).
- A new policy perspective on ageing, NEW SCIENCE OF AGEING (pp. 241-259).
- Understanding and combating unequal ageing, Soziale Gerontologie in gesellschaftlicher Verantwortung (pp. 19-32). Springer Fachmedien Wiesbaden
- Conclusion: Building on the legacy of Peter Townsend, Fighting Poverty, Inequality and Injustice: A Manifesto Inspired by Peter Townsend (pp. 275-302).
- The legacy of Peter Townsend, Fighting Poverty, Inequality and Injustice: A Manifesto Inspired by Peter Townsend (pp. 1-28).
- FIGHTING POVERTY, INEQUALITY AND INJUSTICE A manifesto inspired by Peter Townsend Preface, FIGHTING POVERTY, INEQUALITY AND INJUSTICE: A MANIFESTO INSPIRED BY PETER TOWNSEND (pp. VIII-VIII).
- Why is ageing so unequal?, Unequal Ageing: The Untold Story of Exclusion in Old Age (pp. 141-158).
- Ageing and Generational Politics In Flinders M, Gamble A, Hay C & Kenny M (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of British Politics (pp. 664-683). Oxford University Press
- Aging and Social Policy: Theorising the Social In Bengtson VL, Gans D, Putney N & Silverstein M (Ed.), Handbook of Theories of Aging (pp. 595-614). Springer Publishing Company
- International and Multi-Disciplinary Perspectives on Quality of Life in Old Age: Conceptual Issues, Social Indicators Research Series (pp. 3-13). Springer Netherlands
- Quality of Life in Old Age: Synthesis and Future Perspectives, Social Indicators Research Series (pp. 235-248). Springer Netherlands
- Aging and Politics, Handbook of Aging and the Social Sciences (pp. 339-359). Elsevier
- Aging and politics: An international perspective, Handbook of Aging and the Social Sciences (pp. 339-359).
- AGEING EUROPE: CHALLENGES FOR POLICY AND RESEARCH, MANY FACES OF HEALTH, COMPETENCE AND WELL-BEING IN OLD AGE (pp. 233-244).
- Ageing, learning difficulties and maintaining independence, Understanding Care, Welfare and Community: A Reader (pp. 151-157).
- Foreword In Coulson I & Minichiello V (Ed.), Contemporary Issues in Gerontology: Promoting Positive Ageing (pp. iii-vi). Taylor and Francis
- Older people and health services: The challenge of empowerment, Health and Exclusion: Policy and Practice in Health Provision (pp. 159-179).
- Which way for the European social model: Minimum standards or social quality?, The Changing Face of Welfare: Consequences and Outcomes from a Citizenship Perspective (pp. 33-54).
- Conclusion: From Confucianism to globalisation, East Asian Welfare Regimes in Transition: From Confucianism to Globalisation (pp. 213-224).
- Introduction: East Asian welfare regimes, East Asian Welfare Regimes in Transition: From Confucianism to Globalisation (pp. 3-20).
- The ethnocentric construction of the welfare state, A Handbook of Comparative Social Policy (pp. 116-130).
- Social Quality and Quality of Life, Social Indicators Research Series (pp. 13-31). Springer Netherlands
- Ageing and intergenerational relations in Britain (pp. 49-72). Bristol University Press
- Introduction (pp. 17-23). Springer Science and Business Media LLC
- Introduction, Social Gerontology (pp. 1-16). Taylor & Francis
- Care for elderly people, A Labour of Love (pp. 106-128). Taylor & Francis
- Foreword, Countryside connections (pp. xv-xvi). Bristol University Press
- The ethnocentric construction of the welfare state (pp. 98-114). Edward Elgar Publishing
- Active ageing: rhetoric, theory and practice (pp. 27-52). Edward Elgar Publishing
- Ethnocentrism, the developmental state and East Asian welfare (pp. 226-244). Edward Elgar Publishing
- Age Management in Organisations in the European Union, The SAGE Handbook of Workplace Learning (pp. 251-267). SAGE Publications Ltd
- Ageing and Quality of Life in Europe, The SAGE Handbook of Social Gerontology (pp. 573-586). SAGE Publications Ltd
- Active Ageing in Asia Routledge View this article in WRRO
- Social Protection: Incomes, Poverty and the Reform of Pension Systems, Ageing in Society: European Perspectives on Gerontology (pp. 142-166). SAGE Publications Ltd
- Ageing and Social Class: An Enduring Relationship, The Futures of Old Age (pp. 44-53). SAGE Publications Ltd
- AGEING EUROPE: CHALLENGES FOR POLICY AND RESEARCH, The Many Faces of Health, Competence and Well-Being in Old Age (pp. 231-244). Kluwer Academic Publishers
- Growing Old in the Twentieth Century Routledge
Conference proceedings papers
- Evaluating the National Pension for Salary Earners and the Self-Employed (pp 233-247)
- Age discrimination in the labour market and policy responses: The situation in the United Kingdom. GENEVA PAPERS ON RISK AND INSURANCE-ISSUES AND PRACTICE, Vol. 28(4) (pp 612-624)
- Age and Employment. Australasian Journal on Ageing, Vol. 17 (pp 99-103)
- THE EUROPEAN-COMMUNITY OBSERVATORY ON AGING AND OLDER-PEOPLE. RECENT ADVANCES IN AGING SCIENCE, VOLS I AND II (pp 1691-1696)
Preprints
- The Future of Ageing in Europe. Springer Singapore.
- Research group
-
At the present time, Alan Walker's teaching concentrates on postgraduate research students. He is one of the UK's most experienced postgraduate research supervisors in the fields of sociology, social policy and social gerontology, with more than 60 successful PhD completion's (a 100% completion record).
He would welcome applications from potential postgraduates interested in any of the topics contained in his research section.
Doctoral Students Supervised:
- Celia Briar, Women in State Employment Policy 1905-1986 (1986).
- Tim Blackman, Social Indicators (1987).
- Sammy Chiu, Family Care of Chinese Older People in Britain and Hong Kong (1988).
- Simon Goodwin, Community Care: The Reforms of Mental Health Services (1988).
- Steve Nesbitt, Social And Economic Determinants of British Pensions Policy (1991).
- C K Wong, Ideology, Welfare Mix and the Production of Welfare (1991).
- Monica Dowling, Social Work and Poverty, Attitudes and Actions (1993).
- Tony Maltby, Women,Pensions and Social Dependency in Britain and Hungary 1945-1990 (1993).
- Sandra Shaw, Women and Lone Parenthood (1994).
- Wai-Kam (Sam) Yu, The Response of the Hong Kong Government to the Decommodifying Effects of Public Housing Services 1950 to 1990 (1994).
- Victor Wong, The Politics of Medical Fees in Hong Kong (1995).
- Chack Kwan Chan, Colonial Rule, Chinese Welfare Ideologies and the Reproduction of Social Policy -The Case of Social Security in Hong Kong (1996).
- Fwu Yuan Weng, Post-war Education Policy in Taiwan (1996).
- Chris Crowther, The 'Underclass' Debate: The Police Policy Process and the Social Construction of Order (1997).
- Makoto Kono, The Welfare Mix in the Care of Older People in Japan (1997).
- Ngai Ngan Pun, Youth Policy in China (1997).
- Ian Brown, Community Participation and General Practice (1998).
- Vashti Gosling, Services for People with Learning Difficulties (1999).
- Ruby Chau, The Welfare Mix in Socialist China: A Case Study of Occupational Therapy Stations in Guangzhou (2000).
- Alvin Kwok, Making Sense of Social Networks: Voices of Older Persons Living in Public Housing in Hong Kong (2000).
- Karen Ling, Breaking the Silence: The Experiences of Disabled Women in a Chinese Culture (2000).
- Tetsuo Ogawa, Decentralisation and Diversity in the Delivery of Social Care Services for Older People in Japan (2000).
- Vincent Wijeysingha, Political Economy of State Social Policies in Singapore (2001).
- Ping Kwong Kam, Powerlessness Among Older People in Hong Kong (2002).
- Heung Sang Lam, Family Care for Older People in China (2002).
- Sen Gong, The State and Pension Policy Instability in the People's Republic of China (2003).
- Mark Li, Social Movements in Hong Kong from 1991 to 1997: Implications for Civil Society (2003).
- Mike Williams, Public Participation, Influence and Democracy: A Study of the Sheffield Better Government for Older People Pilot (2003).
- Victoria Gosling, Women's Experiences of Social Exclusion and Regeneration on a Sheffield Estate (2004).
- Michiko Yamada, The Establishment of LTC Insurance and the Social Care Service System for Older People in Japan (2004).
- Mohammed Al-Shabani, Active Ageing and Retiree Participation in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (2005).
- Ying Hong, Business Ethics in Transitional China - the Case of Jiangsu Province (2006).
- Liam Foster, Gender, the Life Course and Pension Provision in the United Kingdom (2006).
- Jeeyeon Kim, Confucian Values, Patriarchy and Women’s Computer Mediated Communication (2006).
- Jill Edwards, The Life Experience of Adults with Cystic Fibrosis (2007).
- Alison Hill, Care in the Context of Later Life Marriages (2007).
- Erica Uusitalo, Empirical Exploration of the Theory and Methods of Social Quality (2008).
- Chang Lyal Fung, A Political Economy of Korean Pension Reform (2009).
- Florence Fong, Intergenerational Relations and the Care of Older People in Hong Kong (2009).
- Sarah Swann, A Study of Pupil Disaffection (2009).
- Tony Song, A Political Economy of Civil Service Pension Reform in Korea (2010).Lei Jie, China’s Welfare Regime 1949-2011 (2011).
- Franklen Choi, A Political Economy of Adult Vocational Education in Hong Kong (2012).
- Byeong Hee Kwon, Active Ageing in South Korea (2013).
- Steve Corbett, The Social Quality of Participatory Democracy (2014).
- Albert Varela Montane, A Conceptual and Empirical Exploration of Social Exclusion (2014).
- Sarah Alden, At the Coalface: the Role of the Street Level Bureaucrat in Provision of Statutory Services to Older People Affected by Homelessness (2015).
- Natalija Jarosenko, In-Work Poverty In Lithuania: Causes And Consequences (2016).
- Matthew Wargent, Democratic Participation and Agonism: Citizen Perspectives on Participatory Spaces Created Under the Localism Act 2011 (2017).
- Ming-lun Chung, A Study of School Anti-Bullying Policy on Taiwan (2017).
- Katey Twyford, People with Dementia Living in Extra Care Housing (2018).
- George Pavlidis, Social and Behavioural Factors Associated with Cognitive and Functional Performance in Cognitively Health Adults (2018).
- Tat Chor Au-Yeung, A Political Economy of In-work Benefits in Hong Kong (2018).
- David Clayton, Loneliness and New Technologies in Later Life (2019).
- Maryam Mortazavi Noogi, Informal Support for Older People in Iran (2019).
- Min-a Jung, The Impact of the Minimum Wage on Older Workers in South Korea (2019).
- Yang Luo, Social Insurance for Rural-Urban Migrant Workers in China (2020).
- Nor Ardyanti Ahmad, The Political Economy of Public Participation in Rural Development in Malaysia (2021).
- Louis Whitehead, The Role of Co-production in Combating Loneliness and Social Isolation in Later Life (2021).
- Gbenga Shadare, Conditional Cash Transfers in Nigeria (2021).
- Ka Man Lo, Lone Mother Families in Hong Kong (2021).
- Sasipim Arampibulkit, Social Policy for Older Women in Thailand (2023).
M. Phils:
- Susan Higham, Attitudes Towards the Receipt of Statutory Services: Older People and Professionals (1994).
- Monika Husemann, 'Nobody Really Understands', Family Carers of People with Dementia (1999).
- Neus Torres Tubau, Socio-demographic Change and the Care of Older People in Spain (2011).
- Kyung Hun Kim, Poverty in Old Age in Korea (2014).
Current PhD topics include:
- Older Nursing Home Residents in China
- Mental health and Young People
- Older Workers in Canada
- Active Ageing in China
- The Doctor-patient Relationship in China
Gathering of Alan's East Asian Doctoral Students, past and present in Hong Kong,16 November 2006. L to R, Back Row: Kam Ping Kwong, Tetsuo Ogawa, Edward Leung, Ngai Ngan Pun, Sam Yu, Alvin Kwok, Lam Heung Sang, William Wong, Simon Wu, Franklen Choi. Front Row: Victor Wong, C K Wong, Sammy Chiu, Carol Walker, Alan Walker, Karen Ngai, Ruby Chau.
- Grants
-
- 1999-2004 Growing Older Research Programme on Extending Quality Life
- Sponsor: ESRC
- 2002-15 European Forum on Population Ageing Research
- Sponsor: European Commission
- 2004-12 European Research Area in Ageing (ERA-AGE)
- Sponsor: European Commission
- 2004-15 New Dynamics of Ageing
- Sponsor: ESRC, EPSRC, BBSRC, MRC, AHRC
- 2009-11 A Road May for Ageing Research (FUTURAGE)
- Sponsor: European Commission
- 2011-16 Social Innovation for Active and Healthy Ageing (SIforAGE)
- Sponsor: European Commission
- 2012-15 Social Innovations for Active Ageing (INNOVAGE)
- Sponsor: European Commission
- 2013-17 Mobilising Active Ageing in Europe (MOPACT)
- Sponsor: European Commission
- 2013 Exploratory Workshop on Ageing and Social Innovation
- Sponsor: European Science Foundation
- 2016-19 Inequalities in Extending Working Lives of an Ageing Workforce
- Sponsor: ESRC
- 2019-25 Extending Working Lives and Inequality
- Sponsor: Swedish Council for Health, Working Life and Welfare.
- 2022-24 Storying Life Courses for Intersectional Inclusion: Ethnicity and Well-being Across Time and Place.
- Sponsor: ESRC
- 1999-2004 Growing Older Research Programme on Extending Quality Life
- Professional activities and memberships
-
- Visiting Professorships in Canada (1988), China (Hong Kong) (1992, 1996, 2005, 2006, 2009), Israel (1988) and Japan (1994, 1995).
- Founding Academician of the Academy of Learned Societies for the Social Sciences, 1999.
- Co-recipient of Queen's Prize for Higher and Further Education (for research on ageing) 2002.
- Vincent Woo Distinguished Scholar, Lingnan University, Hong Kong, 2005.
- Honorary Doctor of Social Sciences, Baptist University of Hong Kong, 2006.
- Lifetime Achievement Award, Social Policy Association, 2007.
- First Outstanding Achievement Award, British Society of Gerontology, 2007.
- First IAGG European Region Medal for Advances in Gerontology and Geriatrics in the Social and Behavioural Sciences, 2011.
- Fellow of the British Academy, 2011.
- First ESRC Impact Champion, 2013.
- Appointed CBE for Services to Social Science, 2014.
- Fellow of the Gerontological Society of America (2016 –).
- Distinguished Visiting Professor in the School of Arts and Social Sciences, The Open University of Hong Kong, 2019-23.
‘In The News’
- Coronavirus vaccine is ‘not a magic bullet for elderly’ and only has a small chance of being effective, scientists say
- iNews, 24 June 2020.
- What needs to be done to increase healthy life expectancy and reduce early exit from work
- NHS England blog, 12 June 2019.
- A social policy on ageing: to reduce the costs of old age, we must improve the entire life course
LSE, British Politics and Policy, 4 June 2018. - Published episode of LSE IQ on ageing. You can listen to it in the following places (as well as itunes):
- We need to talk about ageing~
NHS England blog, 6 November 2017. - “Why Do Some of Us, like David Attenborough, Live to 90?”
The Guardian On-Line, Thursday 5 May 2016. - https://fairnessonthe83.nowthenmagazine.com/
- Old Age is Wonderful
The Daily Mail, 26 May 2014. - Longevity is here to stay – Embrace it
The Financial Times, 09 April 2014. - Active ageing research sets the global agenda
Sheffield University Website, 04 April 2014. - To live longer we have to change outdated ideas of what it means to grow old
Published on The Conversation, 28 March 2014 - Interview Lifetime achievers: Alan Walker
Policy World, Newsletter of the Social Policy Association, Winter 2007 - £20m to help baby boomers grow older gracefully: Researchers launch project to fight health and social problems as a generation heads for 65
Amelia Hill, culture and society correspondent, The Observer, Sunday 29 October, 2006 - Putting ageing at the top of the political agenda
Malcolm Dean, The Edge, November 2005: Issue 20
Receiving the Queen's Anniversary prize 2002
From the farewell dinner at the Happy Seafood Restaurant, Lei Yue Mun, Kowloon, with members of the Department of Social Work at Hong Kong Baptist University during my period as a visiting professor, March 2009.
- Partnerships, engagement and impact
Alan has been engaged in impact work arising from his research for more than three decades. International impact includes co-authorship of the WHO’s strategy on active ageing and the UN’s Madrid International Action Plan on Ageing, and contributions to numerous European Commission policy documents. UK impact includes Northern Ireland’s strategy on ageing, the UK Government 2005 ageing strategy, co-author of the 2016 Foresight report on the Future of an Ageing Population, and changes to UK policies on older workers in the 1980s. More recently he has been advisor to the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Longevity. At local level he Chaired the Sheffield Fairness Commission 2012-13 and is currently chair of the South Yorkshire Mayor’s Health Equity Advisory Panel.
Links
Book: The Future of Ageing in Europe Book: The New Dynamics of Ageing Volume 1 Book: The New Dynamics of Ageing Volume 2 Book: Social Quality Book: Fighting poverty, inequality and injustice Book: Quality of Life in Old Age Book: Understanding Quality of Life in Old Age Book: Growing Older, Quality of Life in Old Age