Study on the Mechanism of Elderly Education Promoting the Development of the Silver Economy

Abstract

With the acceleration of China’s population aging process, the proportion of the population aged 60 and above had reached 21.1% by the end of 2023. The silver economy has become an important new driver for high-quality economic development, and its scale is expected to reach 30 trillion yuan by 2035. As a key link connecting the elderly group and the silver economy, elderly education possesses the dual attributes of public cause and industry, and plays a significant role in developing elderly human resources, guiding elderly consumption, and promoting industrial integration.
By analyzing the internal connection between elderly education and the silver economy, this paper systematically deconstructs four core mechanisms through which elderly education boosts the silver economy, namely the human resource development mechanism, consumption guidance mechanism, industrial integration mechanism, and policy coordination mechanism. Meanwhile, it points out the current practical obstacles, such as the disconnection of supply-side resources, insufficient participation on the demand side, and incomplete integration mechanisms. Furthermore, from four dimensions—improving the supply system, activating potential demand, optimizing integration mechanisms, and strengthening policy guarantees—the paper puts forward suggestions on optimization paths, aiming to provide theoretical support and practical references for promoting the coordinated development of elderly education and the silver economy, as well as proactively addressing population aging.