Search results

The aim is to examine the shifting effects of retirement expectations and social support on adjustment three and half and ten months post‐retirement.

For the purpose of this study, the authors used a survey methodology. Expectations regarding retirement and social support were used to predict three facets of satisfaction post‐retirement; life satisfaction, retirement satisfaction, and social satisfaction.

Results suggested that expectations consistently and significantly predicted satisfaction early and later in retirement. Social support was only a significant antecedent of retirement satisfaction at time 2, and had a non‐significant relationship to social and life satisfaction in retirement.

Results support the view that retirement expectations have a strong influence on retirement, life, and social satisfaction in the first year of an individual's retirement.

The paper's findings imply that interventions designed to create realistic expectations of the retirement experience may have a positive impact on adjustment.

Retirement adjustment is the process by which aged workers become accustomed to the changed facts of life in the transition from work to retirement and develop psychological well-being in their post-working life. The purpose of this paper is to explore the psychosocial factors that significantly explain retirement intentions and retirement adjustment, using two separate empirical studies.

Retirement self-efficacy, low work involvement, older worker identity and relative deprivation significantly explained retirement intentions (bridge employment engagement, part-time retirement, late retirement and full retirement) of workers over 60 years (Study 1, n=157). Retirement adjustment indices (retirement satisfaction, feelings of anxiety and depression) were associated with psychosocial factors for retirees (Study 2, n=218).

The findings highlight that retirement self-efficacy and older worker identity positively and significantly explained both full retirement of aged workers and retirement satisfaction of retirees. Relative deprivation negatively significantly explained partial and late retirement intentions and retirement satisfaction of retirees.

The implications of these studies are discussed for understanding retirement planning and counselling practice.

Retirement adjustment conceptualized as a process has important implications for retirement planning, and consequently can influence the project of the life course, as well as career’s decisions.

Social contexts should consider all factors that can negatively affect self-efficacy, work involvement and identity of employees in the mid and late-career stages, and thus contribute to reinforce and strengthen personal and psychosocial resources involved in planning and adaptation to retirement, and to increase the insight into the planning and decisions older workers make to face retirement.

This work had two goals, pursued by two empirical studies with two samples: workers over 60 years, and retirees. The authors contend that the availability of two different sets of data increases the generalizability of the findings.

In the context of population aging, retirement has become a central issue in academic, professional and government discourse. A consensus can be seen to be emerging around the idea of postponing retirement in favor of promoting active aging. From this perspective, the purpose of this study, using work-role attachment theory and met expectations theory, is to focus on the pre-retirement period and aims to better understand how certain individual factors and expectations explain the planned age of retirement.

An online survey was administered in 2015 to employees aged 45 and over working at a Canadian firm in the high-technology sector.

The results show that career commitment, attachment to work and expectations relating to workplace adjustments prior to retirement were positively associated with planned retirement age, whereas expectations relating to professional development showed a negative association with this variable.

This study fits into a line of research focusing on the end-of-career period and sheds light on the decision to retire by looking closely at the impact of employment conditions and human resource management practices on this decision. In a labor market context marked by high numbers of workers aged 55 and older, combined with the increasingly critical need for skilled labor and considering the expectations of workers leading up to their retirement could help to better plan these workers' end-of-career period.

Many studies have examined the characteristics of retirees after retirement. The authors’ study is one of the few that examines the aspirations of workers between the ages of 45 and 55 who are still employed but are beginning to consider their retirement plans, including the decision to continue working longer. Its originality also lies in combining work-role attachment theory and met expectations theory.

This research aims to look at preferences for retirement, in particular, later retirement, amongst a sample of older employees in the UK in the financial services industry. It seeks to investigate specifically the influence of personal, psychological and psychosocial determinants of preferences for retiring later. Additionally, the study presents a typology of different retirement preferences based on psychological and psychosocial variables.

The data are based on questionnaires from 556 employees of a UK financial services organisation (aged 40‐60) and measures include psychological expectations of retirement (expected adjustment to retirement, attitudes towards leisure and social interaction), psychosocial attitudes (job satisfaction, intrinsic motivation, organisational comment and work commitment) and attitudes towards working beyond normal retirement age. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses were conducted and one‐way ANOVA was conducted to identify differences between groups.

The data show very negative attitudes towards working later than the normal retirement age and that expectations of adjustment to retirement were the most significant predictor towards retirement preferences, followed by work commitment. Significant differences in retirement attitudes and intentions were found between different groups of employees.

Some of the practical implications of the work suggest that retirement preferences are shaped only to a moderate degree by psychosocial attitudes. In seeking to retain older workers in the workforce for longer employers should encourage employees to develop strong social relationships at work and allow gradual transitions to ultimate retirement.

The paper looked at preferences for retirement, particularly later retirement, and found that, if employers wish to retain the knowledge, skills and expertise of their employees, then it would seem that they need to devise means of allowing people to achieve some of the more desirable aspects of retirement (greater free time, opportunity to pursue hobbies and interests) at the same time as retaining some of the benefits of work (status, professional interest, income etc.). Phased and flexible retirement initiatives therefore seem to be one of the solutions.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the extent to which perceived financial preparedness, social retirement anxieties, and level of income influence mature aged workers' preferences to enter different retirement employment options within the contingent and the flexible work arrangements (FWA) types of bridge employment.

Data for this study was collected in 2008 using a questionnaire with 31 items. A total of 144 mature aged workers from multiple firms, aged 50 years and over, working full‐time, in the construction industry participated in the study. The collected data was analysed using correlation and regression analyses.

The results indicate that the study variables have positive and negative influences on pre‐retirees' preference for the retirement employment options within the contingent and the FWA bridge employment. It was also found that while income failed to moderate, social retirement anxieties did significantly moderate the relationship between perceived financial preparedness and the different employment options within the contingent bridge employment.

This study clearly provides practitioners and career counsellors a new insight that the work and non‐work predictors for the retirement employment options within each of the contingent and the FWA bridge employments vary between factors of perceived financial preparedness, social retirement anxieties and level of income.

In contradiction to the existing literature that “comfortable” social retirement adjustment as a determinant for bridge employment, this study's findings revealed that if pre‐retirees perceive that they are not adequately financially prepared for retirement, they would opt for bridge employment irrespective of levels of social retirement anxieties.

The aim of this study is to compare the Spanish and Italian early work retirement (EWR) models in a sample comprising individuals from both countries based on the level of voluntariness involved in labour market exit, psychosocial outcomes, perceived consequences, socio‐demographic variables and motivation.

The authors used a cluster analysis approach to carry out a cross‐sectional study based on a total sample of 1,131 early retirees (605 Spaniards and 526 Italians) drawn from different industries.

In the Spanish but not in the Italian case, EWR was predominantly perceived as forced. K‐means cluster analysis identified four groups of early retirees in both countries based on perceived outcomes of EWR. Two of these clusters represent extreme positive and negative assessments of early retirement consequences, while the remaining two reflect intermediate positions.

These results show that the involuntary Spanish EWR model is associated with a significant negative outcomes cluster, whereas voluntary early retirees in Italy are significantly grouped in the positive outcomes cluster. Variables referring to early exit motives, attitudes towards work and post‐working life and psychosocial adjustment are employed to define the clusters.

This study reveals the existence of significant differences in the level of voluntariness between EWR in Spain and its Italian counterpart, in line with the findings obtained by other researchers. The findings support the conclusions of studies that suggest the existence of differences in post‐employment life depending on the level of voluntariness concerned in retirement from the labour market.

This paper aims to carry out an in‐depth exploration of early retirement processes from a psychosocial perspective, identifying factors that play a relevant role in decisions for leaving work as well as variables involved in retirement adjustment and possible outcomes for retirees.

Qualitative data from nine focus groups – made up of a total of 78 Spanish early retirees from different sectors of activity (industry, bank/financial services and telecommunications) – were codified and analyzed using the ATLAS.ti 5 program.

The study highlights the relevance of how organizational exit is carried out (voluntariness, perception of justice, etc.) in relation to the adjustment to retirement. The degree to which the labor market exit implies different types of rupture (psychological contract, identity, professional and personal objectives, way of life, etc.) conditions the adaptation to post‐working life. The importance of social support during the transition process from work to early retirement is pointed out.

The study is an initial exploratory approach to the early retirement experience in Spain. Although the sample is not representative, the use of qualitative methods allows for the identification of relevant variables to include in future research. Results should be complemented by means of triangulation method, involving contrast between qualitative and quantitative strategies.

Organizational HRM policies should aim to promote a smoother early exit as well as guarantee “fair play” during the process. Concerning adjustment to early retirement, psychosocial programs aiming to improve coping strategies are needed.

The paper presents a systematic overview of early retirees' discourse, analyzing the role of different variables involved in the transition process from work to early retirement.

With the development over recent years of Preparation for Retirement (PFR) courses, it has become a matter of concern to evaluate the relevance of their content and method to those who participate. Beveridge and Rives and Siegel suggest that programmes have tended to concentrate too much on information giving, largely on environmental issues like health, finance and housing, to the neglect of problems of psychological adjustment. Gilmore has pointed out that there is no evidence that teaching styles and methodologies appropriate to older people have been given sufficient consideration by course planners.

The practice of mandatory retirement age implies that some retirees may be forced to retire or are compelled to continue working. Retirement would then be determined by age and not by their personal choices. Against this backdrop, this study aims to understand the associations retirement transition types (voluntary or involuntary retirement) with retirement satisfaction and life satisfaction.

This mixed research study seeks to understand how the retirement transition type in the form of voluntary or involuntary retirement is associated with retirement satisfaction and life satisfaction. In this study, 103 Singapore baby boomer retirees were interviewed and a questionnaire was administered.

Results showed that voluntary retirement and high social–emotional resources had significant positive associations with retirement satisfaction, and that financial resources and retirement satisfaction had significant associations with life satisfaction.

Based on this study’s findings, a synthesized conceptual model was designed to illustrate the different roles and associations of resources with retirement satisfaction and life satisfaction. A retirement trajectory model was also created to cater for policy design at various stages of the retirement experience.

The retirement experience is multi-dimensional. It is highly relevant to almost every older adult. The relevance of this topic also meant that the findings in this study carry a potentially higher impact. Using the life span and multi-level perspectives to examine retirement, the findings in this study invite several timely human resources (HR) and national policy reviews. This paper proposed HR policy practices at three main points – late-career, retirement and bridge employment.

A unique feature of this study was to differentiate and compare “retirement satisfaction” with “life satisfaction”, and the differentiation of “retirement transition”, “retirement adjustment” and the “retirement trajectory”. The differentiation of these concepts can better shape policies targeted at different phases of the retirement experience. In addition, the resource-based dynamic perspective was used to identify and understand the types of resources that have significant associations with retirement and life satisfaction. For example, social–emotional resources were found to be significantly associated with retirement satisfaction, and financial resources were found to be significantly associated with life satisfaction.

In light of significant changes over the past decade in the nature of the workforce, the workplace, and retirement itself, this article examines the factors that predispose employees to retire. The study uses a sample of older workers who had attended pre‐retirement planning sessions open to employees over age 45. Results suggest that employment status of spouse (rather than marital status per se), continuous years of service (rather than salary), the physical demands of the job (rather than overall health), and certainty about the plans for retirement (rather than the content of those plans) are significantly related to intentions to retire.