Abstract
We examine the extent to which multiple social identities are associated with enhanced health and well-being in retirement because they provide a basis for giving and receiving social support. Results from a cross-sectional study show that retirees (N = 171) who had multiple social identities following (but not prior to) retirement report being (a) more satisfied with retirement, (b) in better health, and (c) more satisfied with life in general. Furthermore, mediation analyses revealed an indirect path from multiple social identities to greater satisfaction with retirement and better health through greater provision, but not receipt, of social support to others. These findings are the first to point to the value of multiple group membership post-retirement as a basis for increased opportunities to give meaningful support to others. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications for the management of multiple identities in the process of significant life transitions such as retirement.
Highlights
IntroductionThis is because for many people retirement involves giving up a work identity with which they are highly engaged, and which provides them with a sense of respect and self-worth
Adjustment to retirement is a major challenge
We ran a series of hierarchical linear regressions in which we entered multiple identities pre-retirement at Step 1 and multiple identities post-retirement at Step 2 as predictors of satisfaction with retirement, subjective health status, and subjective quality of life
Summary
This is because for many people retirement involves giving up a work identity with which they are highly engaged, and which provides them with a sense of respect and self-worth In this context, it is not surprising that there is a lot of variation in people’s adjustment to retirement and that a substantial number of retirees report compromised health and well-being in the transition to retirement (Wang, 2007; Wang and Shi, 2014). It is not surprising that there is a lot of variation in people’s adjustment to retirement and that a substantial number of retirees report compromised health and well-being in the transition to retirement (Wang, 2007; Wang and Shi, 2014) Such findings beg the question of how best to manage the transition to retirement so as to allow people to maintain, and possibly enhance, their health and wellbeing. While a focus on social group memberships provides a useful theoretical framework for understanding why retirement puts people at risk (because it entails losing valued group memberships), it points to potential ways to promote successful adjustment — namely, compensating for the loss of work group membership by strengthening memberships in other social groups post-retirement
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