Retirement Well-being Research Articles

Retirement Planning & Job Satisfaction: Cushion to Avoid Bridge Employment?

<p>Retirement forces older workers to disconnect with their previous behavioural patterns and economic position. Transition and adjustment from working life to retirement places great psychological pressure and financial distress on older workers, especially those with dependent children. Bridge employment provides a solution for older workers to continue working after retirement while transitioning into retirement slowly and smoothly. As losing the job role has a significant impact on the psychological well-being of retirees, engaging in bridge employment helps to fulfil the important psychological functions of older workers by providing an adaptive style to retirement. This study investigates the influence of retirement planning and job satisfaction on bridge employment. A self-administered questionnaire was used in this study and a total of 523 samples were collected for nine major districts in Sabah. Data were analysed using Partial Least Square (PLS) method version 2.0. The result showed a significant relationship between retirement planning and job satisfaction on bridge employment, explaining 4.7% the variance in bridge employment and job satisfaction was found to be the strongest predictor of bridge employment.</p>

Gendered work–family life courses and financial well-being in retirement

Abstract How are gendered work–family life courses associated with financial well-being in retirement? In this article we compare the cohorts born 1920–1950 in West Germany and Switzerland, whose adult life courses are characterized by similar strong male-breadwinner contexts in both countries. The countries differ in that Switzerland represented a liberal pension system, whereas Germany represented a corporatist protective pension system when these cohorts retired. We therefore assess how gendered work–family life courses that developed in similar male-breadwinner contexts are related to financial well-being in retirement in different pension systems. Using data from the SHARELIFE survey we conduct multichannel sequence analysis and cluster analysis to identify groups of typical work–family life courses from ages 20 to 59. Regression models estimate how these groups are associated with the individual pension income and household income in retirement. Results show that women who combined motherhood with part time work and extended periods out of the labour force have even lower individual pension income in Switzerland compared to their German peers. This relative disadvantage partly extends to lower household income in retirement. Findings support that male breadwinner policies earlier in life combined with liberal pension policies later in life, as in Switzerland, intensify pension penalties for typical female work–family life courses of early motherhood and weak labour force attachment. We conclude that life course sensitive social policies should harmonize regulations, which are in effect earlier in life with policies later in life for specific birth cohorts.

The Importance of Resilience for Well-Being in Retirement

The increase in the elderly population has prompted research on retirement. This study investigated the importance of resilience, economic satisfaction, the length of retirement, and planning to well-being during retirement of 270 participants. The majority of this sample were men (64%), and the mean age was 65 years (SD = 5.7). The participants were retired members of 10 public and private organizations in Rio de Janeiro. Factor analysis and hierarchical regression were performed. The results showed that determined resilience (mastery, adaptability, confidence and perseverance) and socioeconomic satisfaction were the main predictors of well-being in retirement and explained 28% of this model. The findings suggest that well-being in retirement is closely related to socioeconomic satisfaction and determined resilience. Additional research should address the importance of resilience for the well-being of retirees who are or not members of retirement associations. Resilience attitudes should be promoted in Retirement Education Programs.

The Caregiving Responsibilities of Retirees: What are They and How Do They Affect Retirees' Well-Being?

Using data from the 2010 and 2012 American Time Use Surveys (ATUS) and the associated Well-being Modules, this paper examines how caregiving affects the well-being of retirees who are caregivers. Different caregiving activities are examined, including caring for household children, caring for non-household children, caring for household adults, and caring for non-household adults. Different aspects of well-being are examined, including how meaningful respondents find their activities and how happy, sad, tired, in pain, and stressed their activities make them. The results show that, controlling for selection into caregiving, most caregiving negatively affects the well-being of retirees. This suggests that policies that remove some of the caregiving burden from retirees would increase their well-being.

Did Cognitive Ability Affect the Stock Reallocation Decisions of Older Investors During the Great Recession?

Retirees are increasingly responsible for managing their own retirement savings. The ability to manage these assets efficiently can have an important impact on retirement wellbeing. Lower levels of cognitive ability in old age can reduce an investor’s ability to control emotional responses to a loss. This may result in an increased preference for safety following a market decline, resulting in a reallocation away from stocks that is associated with long-term underperformance. We investigate whether cognitive ability is related to a shift in portfolio allocation among retirees during the 2007-2008 financial crisis using the following conceptual framework, Stock Reallocations=f(cognitive ability, risk tolerance, sentiment, demographics). Using panel data from the Health and Retirement Study to compare return-adjusted asset allocations in 2008 to portfolio allocations in 2006, we find that cognitive ability is negatively related to allocations away from stock. Compared to those with the lowest levels of cognitive ability, respondents with higher cognitive ability are 40% less likely to reduce their stock allocation by 50% or more, even after controlling for age, education, and other household characteristics. It is likely that investors with low cognitive ability are more prone to the effects of sentiment that lead to inflows following high recent returns and outflows following a market decline. Our results suggest that retirees with lower cognitive ability may be particularly vulnerable to underperformance resulting from market timing mistakes. Our results may help explain the negative relation between investor performance and advanced age.

Changes in use of time, activity patterns, and health and wellbeing across retirement: design and methods of the life after work study

BackgroundRetirement is a major life transition during which people restructure everyday activities; however little is known about this. The primary aim of the Life After Work study is to comprehensively measure changes in time use and patterns of physical activity and sedentary behaviour, and its associations with health and wellbeing, across the retirement transition.Methods/DesignA target sample of 120 participants aged 50 years and over will be recruited in two Australian state capital cities, Adelaide and Brisbane. Participants will undertake a battery of assessments approximately 3 months prior to retirement, and 3, 6 and 12 months post-retirement. Measures will include self-reported use of time (using the Multimedia Activity Recall for Children and Adults), objectively assessed physical activity and sedentary behaviour (using Actigraph GT3X+ accelerometers), self-reported health and well-being (using a battery of questionnaires including the Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36), Australian Unity Personal Well-being Index (AUPWI), Depression Anxiety Stress Scales 21 (DASS21), Short Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale, UCLA Loneliness Scale, Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale), retirement circumstances and socio-demographic characteristics, objectively assessed anthropometric measures (height, weight and waist circumference), and resting blood pressure. Multivariate mixed models will be used to examine changes in use of time, health and well-being across retirement.DiscussionThe results will provide important new information that will inform the development of lifestyle and policy interventions to address and improve health and well-being in retirement.

Broad Reciprocity, Elderly Poverty, and the Retiree/Nonretiree Cleavage in the Demand for Public Retirement Income Support

This article examines whether a structural or a neo-institutionalist approach best explains cross-national variations in the retiree/nonretiree cleavage regarding pension policy preferences. Prior research on welfare policy attitudes shows that in European countries retirees are more likely to support intensive public pension provision than are nonretirees, while in the United States both groups are as likely to support it. As an alternative to the increasingly predominant, neo-institutionalist approach, I propose a structural explanation that focuses on the role of elderly poverty. I argue that higher levels of elderly poverty induce nonretirees to establish their pension policy preferences based on a principle of broad reciprocity. First, in a context of high elderly poverty, nonretirees react to the demand for reciprocity by their impoverished elderly parents by supporting improvements in public pension protection. Second, in the same context, due to perceptions of retirees as highly deserving of public support, nonretirees feel more compelled to demand more public pension protection that improves the economic wellbeing of retirees. The results are consistent with this expectation. Using a sample of 30 OECD country years and multilevel models, countries with higher levels of elderly poverty present smaller retiree/nonretiree divides in support of public pension provision and pension spending increases.

Bem-estar na aposentadoria: o que isto significa para os servidores públicos federais?

Este estudo analisou as percepções dos servidores públicos federais sobre o bem-estar na aposentadoria e como estavam se preparando para esta transição. O objetivo foi contribuir para o entendimento do processo de aposentadoria e subsidiar políticas públicas e programas de preparação para aposentadoria. O estudo foi realizado na Universidade Federal de Viçosa, MG e a amostra foi composta por docentes e técnico-administrativos. A coleta de dados foi realizada entre agosto de 2010 e fevereiro de 2011, sendo realizadas entrevistas semi-estruturadas. As análises de significância do bem-estar na aposentadoria foram baseadas no modelo da análise de discurso proposto por Patrick Chareudeau. Os resultados sugerem que os fatores percebidos como essenciais para o bem-estar na aposentadoria foram saúde e tranquilidade financeira, que estão ligados à dimensão fatores de risco e sobrevivência. Os fatores considerados positivos em relação ao bem-estar foram educação, relacionamento familiar, saúde e envolvimento em atividades culturais e de lazer. Os fatores negativos foram a perda das perspectivas de trabalho na aposentadoria, da segurança financeira e da falta de conhecimento prévio do processo de aposentadoria, que juntos predizem dificuldades na transição. Os resultados enfatizaram a importância de incluir a família na preparação para a aposentadoria como ressaltado em pesquisas anteriores. É evidente, ainda, a falta de preparação para aposentadoria pelos participantes desta pesquisa. Ao final, destaca-se que o conhecimento dos fatores-chave que contribuem para o bem-estar na aposentadoria para cada categoria profissional pode levar a maior adesão aos programas, e, consequentemente, ao bem-estar em geral para os aposentados e suas famílias.

Income decline and retiree well-being: the moderating role of attachment.

Given that it influences the appraisal of situations and the utilization of coping resources, attachment orientation may condition the effects of retirement-related stressors on retiree well-being. Focusing on depression, psychosomatic complaints and health, as well as income decline as a retirement-related stressor, we followed a sample of workers from just before retirement to up to 7 years postretirement. Results indicate that attachment avoidance-but not anxiety-moderates the adverse effects of income decline on well-being, with such effects more pronounced among individuals reporting higher levels of attachment avoidance. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Retirement Resources Inventory: Construction, factor structure and psychometric properties

The scientific investigation of the relationship between resources and retirement well-being is impeded by the lack of proper measurement of resources. This study reports on the development of an inventory that assesses resources relevant to retirement well-being. The 35-item Retirement Resources Inventory (RRI) is a self-report measure consisting of three factors. The RRI was extensively evaluated in a sample of 267 Australian retirees aged 50years or above. In general, the three subscales of the RRI were shown to possess good internal consistency (0.81–0.89) and test–retest reliability (0.83–0.88) within a one-month interval. Retirement resources, as assessed by the RRI, significantly accounted for additional variance in both retirement satisfaction (16%) and retirement adjustment (22%) above and beyond that explained by demographic variables. More importantly, results from cross-lagged panel analysis indicated that retirement resources predicted retirement well-being rather than the reverse. Findings from the current study provide strong support for the resource perspective, which proposes that resources are critical to well-being in retirement. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings for retirement planning and designing retirement interventions are discussed.

Qui seront les premiers nés du baby-boom à risque de vulnérabilité financière à la retraite? Une comparaison Québec-Ontario

The oncoming retirement of baby boomers has governments worried. Will individual baby boomers demonstrate the ability to prepare financially for their retirement? Well-being in retirement depends largely on financial preparedness during working life. Those baby boomers who are the most vulnerable at the end of their working lives are more likely to become vulnerable during retirement. This study looks at the income of the first baby boomers, those born between 1946 and 1956, aged 50 to 60, according to the 2006 Canadian census. First we establish the socio-economic categories for which members are most financially vulnerable. Then, we estimate how many baby boomers are vulnerable and to what extent. This study's preferred approach is an interprovincial comparison between Quebec and Ontario, used to analyze individual aspects of baby boomers' financial positions.

Book Reviews

Wendy A. Stock of Montana State University reviews “Reconsidering Retirement: How Losses and Layoffs Affect Older Workers” by Courtney C. Coile and Phillip B. Levine. The EconLit Abstract of the reviewed work begins: Examines how the current economic crisis will affect older workers' decisions to retire, including the impact of stock, housing, and labor markets on the transition into retirement. Discusses defining and explaining retirement; detecting the impact of market conditions; the impact of the stock market crash; the impact of the housing market crash; the impact of the labor market crash; and implications for retiree well-being. Coile is Class of 1966 Associate Professor in the Department of Economics at Wellesley College. Levine is Catherine Coman and A. Barton Hepburn Professor in the Department of Economics at Wellesley College. Index.

The Effects of the Financial Crisis on Actual and Anticipated Consumption

We studied how households adjust their spending in response to the financial crisis. Based on five waves of data from the Consumption and Activities Mail Survey, we quantified the reduction in total consumption and in specific categories of consumption in the older population at large and by stock ownership, both as a proxy for wealth and to test assumptions about whether stock ownership was associated with different responses. In particular, we compared consumption changes between 2007 and 2009 with consumption changes over prior years. We used panel data on anticipated changes in spending at retirement to quantify the effects of the financial crisis on well-being in retirement via a difference-in-differences approach.

An analysis of well-being in retirement: The role of pensions, health, and ‘voluntariness’ of retirement

This paper examines a wide range of determinants of retiree well-being of retirees. Using data from the 2000 Health and Retirement Study, increases in economic factors such as income lead to higher well-being, although relative income has a larger effect than absolute income. The strongest predictors are the voluntariness of entering retirement, pension characteristics, and health. Retirees “forced” to retire or have defined contribution pensions or bad health have significantly lower well-being. The results suggest a more nuanced approach in addressing retiree well-being than just a focus on the economic well-being of retirees.

Psychological well-being in retirement: The effects of personal and gendered contextual resources.

Although prior research points to the gendered nature of work and private routines, surprisingly few studies have explored the influence of gender on the sources of psychological well-being in retirement. Drawing on resource theories and theories on the gendered division of labor, this study examines how preretirement resources relate to retirees' psychological well-being by using data from the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study. It is hypothesized that possessing key resources prior to retirement as well as losing or gaining resources in the transition to retirement influence retirees' well-being and that these effects are partially conditioned by gender. Results indicate that preretirement physical health, tenacity in goal pursuit, and flexibility in goal adjustment are beneficial for men's and women's well-being alike. By contrast, financial assets and job dissatisfaction are more strongly related to men's psychological well-being in retirement and preretirement social contacts to that of women. Thus, the study underscores the importance of considering gendered resources in retirement research.

How Financial Literacy and Impatience Shape Retirement Wealth and Investment Behaviors

Two competing explanations for why consumers have trouble with financial decisions are gaining momentum. One is that people are financially illiterate since they lack understanding of simple economic concepts and cannot carry out computations such as computing compound interest, which could cause them to make suboptimal financial decisions. A second is that impatience or present-bias might explain suboptimal financial decisions. That is, some people persistently choose immediate gratification instead of taking advantage of larger long-term payoffs. We use experimental evidence from Chile to explore how these factors appear related to poor financial decisions. Our results show that our measure of impatience is a strong predictor of wealth and investment in health. Financial literacy is also correlated with wealth though it appears to be a weaker predictor of sensitivity to framing in investment decisions. Policymakers interested in enhancing retirement well-being would do well to consider the importance of these factors.

Implications for Retirement Wellbeing of Financial Literacy and Planning

Relatively little is known about why people fail to plan for retirement and whether planning and information costs might affect retirement saving patterns. This chapter reports on a purpose-built survey module on planning and financial literacy for the Health and Retirement Study which measures how people make financial plans, collect the information needed to make these plans, and implement the plans. We show that financial illiteracy is widespread among older Americans, particularly women, minorities, and the least educated. We also find that the financially savvy are more likely to plan and to succeed in their planning, and they rely on formal methods such as retirement calculators, retirement seminars, and financial experts, instead of family/relatives or co-workers. These results have implications for targeted financial education efforts.

Women's Retirement and Self-Assessed Well-Being: An Analysis of Three Measures of Well-Being Among Recent and Long-Term Retirees Relative to Homemakers

Focusing on women from the U.S. over 60 years old in 2006, this study analyzed the relationship between retirement and three subjective measures of well-being: depressive symptoms, financial worries, and health. Drawing on the life course perspective and the heterogeneity of women's labor force experiences, this study contrasted the well-being of recent retirees with those who self-identified as homemakers (n = 1695) and long-term retirees with homemakers (n = 2012). Findings indicated that being a recent retiree was associated with more favorable reports of health and that being a long-term retiree was more favorably associated with accounts of all three outcome measures relative to homemakers. Thus, despite the major role change they experienced, findings support the notion that participating in the paid labor force may have been a protective factor with regard to self-assessed well-being.

How Economic Security Changes During Retirement

Most studies of retirement well-being have focused on outcomes for relatively young retirees. Few studies have considered how retirement security changes as older Americans age. Following older adults from age 67 (when most have stopped working) to age 80, this study uses projections of wealth and income to assess how their economic security changes during retirement. Results indicate that typical older adults experience a decline in retirement wealth and income between ages 67 and 80. More than two-fifths of retirees will have significantly less income at age 80 than they did at age 67, with the median decline in income being $16,000 for current retirees and $23,000 for boomers. Some older adults, however, will be better off later in retirement. Approximately two-fifths of retirees will have significantly more income at age 80 than they did at age 67, with the median increase in income being $14,000 for current retirees and $17,000 for boomers. At least some of the change in economic well-being during retirement is related to changes in marital status, health status, living arrangements, and work status.

Affective Well-Being in Retirement: The Influence of Values, Money, and Health Across Three Years

In this study, personal values, health, and financial status were investigated as determinants of affective well-being in a sample of 371 recent retirees across 3 years. Personal values, measured with the Portrait Value Questionnaire (Schwartz et al. in J Cross Cult Psychol 32:519–542, 2001), were hypothesized to show direct links to positive affect (PA) and negative affect (NA) as well as to moderate the association between financial and health status and affective well-being. Using structural equation modeling, higher PA was predicted by female gender, better finances, fewer illnesses, and higher self-transcendence (ST), openness to change (OC), and conservation values. Higher NA was predicted by female gender, lower finances, more illnesses, higher self-enhancement (SE) and lower OC values. SE and OC values also moderated the association between financial status and PA. Longitudinal analyses indicated a relatively stable pattern of associations across 3 years. While the impact of finances on affect was stable over time, the effects of health and values increased across 3 years.