• Vienna Institute of Demography (Ed.) - Miguel Sánchez-Romero - Michaela Kreyenfeld - Iñaki Permanyer - Michaela Potančoková - Vanessa di Lego (Guest Eds.)

Vienna Yearbook of Population Research 2025

Population inequality matters

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The Vienna Yearbook of Population Research is an open access journal that features contributions addressing population trends as well as a broad range of theoretical and methodological issues in population research. Besides Research articles and Review articles, the journal includes Data and Trends contributions, which analyse changes in population dynamics or present databases and data infrastructure. It also features Perspectives articles, which focus on ideas, concepts or theories, as well as invited Debates reflecting on selected questions and issues. Since 2008, the volumes have been devoted to selected themes following special calls for thematic issues.

The 2025 volume of the Vienna Yearbook of Population Research focuses on the role of population inequality in demographic research, particularly, on the interplay between population diversity and social inequality. Besides classical markers of heterogeneity in individual behavior, such as gender, age, education, family status, migration background, urban-rural residence and socio-economic status, other sources of inequality are covered in the volume. They include marginalized populations, such as homeless people, generational and spatial factors as well as emerging trends, such as digitalization. Understanding population inequality is key for modeling population developments and projecting them into the future. Equally important is to understand how and why different types of inequality arise and evolve, and what policy challenges they impose for socio-economic development, welfare systems and social cohesion.

Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften
Austrian Academy of Sciences Press
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Vienna Yearbook of Population Research 2025
ISSN 1728-4414
Print Edition
ISSN 1728-5305
Online Edition
ISBN 978-3-7001-9681-5
Print Edition
ISBN 978-3-7001-9682-2
Online Edition



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Austrian Academy of Sciences Press
A-1011 Wien, Dr. Ignaz Seipel-Platz 2,
Tel. +43-1-515 81/DW 3420, Fax +43-1-515 81/DW 3400
https://verlag.oeaw.ac.at, e-mail: bestellung.verlag@oeaw.ac.at
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The growing gap in cognitive skills within and between countries

    Wolfgang Lutz

Vienna Yearbook of Population Research 2025, pp. 17-26, 2025/12/17

Population inequality matters

doi: 10.1553/p-5g8c-k457


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doi:10.1553/p-5g8c-k457

Abstract

In this contribution two recent studies on the inequality of trends in cognitive skills are discussed. One uses longitudinal data on tested adult literacy and numeracy in Germany and finds that for the more educated and those in intellectually demanding jobs, skills continue to improve up to higher working ages, while for those with low starting levels and blue-collar jobs, skills start to decline already in the thirties. Another study estimates global level trends in skills in literacy adjusted mean years of schooling and finds a growing gap in skills between countries, despite some convergence in formal educational attainment levels. This article discusses selected possible consequences of this growing inequality in skills within and between countries, and outlines a further research agenda.

Keywords: Education; Inequalities; Cognitive skills; Adult literacy; Adult numeracy

Published Online: 2025/12/17

Object Identifier: 0xc1aa5572 0x0040870a

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Metrics: https://plu.mx/plum/a/?doi=10.1553/p-5g8c-k457

Rights: © The Author(s), Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna 2025 This article/book is published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) that allows the sharing, use and adaptation in any medium, provided that the user gives appropriate credit, provides a link to the license, and indicates if changes were made.