Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Rethinking Retirement

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Handbook of Sociology of Aging

Part of the book series: Handbooks of Sociology and Social Research ((HSSR))

Abstract

Because retirement is continuously being shaped by social policy, labor markets, economic systems, family dynamics, and personal predilections, retirement research has been the study of a changing social institution. Macro and micro level social processes have transformed what once was a status unavailable to the majority of older workers into a highly anticipated and often eagerly awaited stage of the life course. As the means of production shifted away from agriculture and the scale of enterprises grew, bureaucratic standardization of job entries and exits became a key component of labor force management. Defining the composition of that labor force relative to skill, speed, and compliance was linked with demographic traits such as age, gender, and education. Although the specifics have changed, retirement continues to be a key component of the social organization of work and the distribution of income. As categories of nonemployment, retirement, unemployment, disability, home production, and leisure are responsive to broader labor market conditions, prevailing economic policies, and social norms.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 109.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 139.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Barfield, Richard and James Morgan. 1969. Early Retirement, The Decision and the Experience. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Beck, Scott. 1985. “Determinants of Labor Force Activity among Retired Men.” Research on Aging 7:251–80.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brubaker, Ellie and Timothy Brubaker. 1992. “The Context of Retired women as Caregivers.” Pp. 222–235 in Families and Retirement, edited by M. Szinovacz, D. J. Ekerdt, and B. Vinick. Newbury Park: Sage Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Butrica, Barbara, Howard Iams, Karen Smith, and Eric Toder. 2009. “The Disappearing Defined Benefit Pension and Its Potential Impact On The Retirement Incomes of Baby Boomers.” Social Security Bulletin 69(3):1–27.

    Google Scholar 

  • Calasanti, Toni. 1993. “Bringing in Diversity: Toward an Inclusive Theory of Retirement.” Journal of Aging Studies 7(2):133–50.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DeViney, Stanley and Angela O’Rand. 1988. “Gender-Cohort Succession and Retirement among Older Men and Women, 1951–1984.” Sociological Quarterly 29:525–40.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dorfman, Lorraine. 1992. “Couples in Retirement: Division of Household Work.” Pp. 159–173 in Families and Retirement, edited by M. Szinovacz, D. J. Ekerdt, and B. Vinick. Newbory Park: Sage Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • EBRI. (2005). History of 401(k) Plans: An Update. Washington, DC: EBRI.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ekerdt, David, Barbara Vinick, and Raymond Bossé. 1989. “Orderly Endings: Do Men Know When They Will Retire?” Journal of Gerontology: Social Sceinces 44:S28–35.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ekerdt, David and Stanley DeViney. 1990. “On Defining Persons as Retired.” Journal of Aging Studies 4(3):211–29.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Elder, Glen and Eliza Pavalko. 1993. “Work Careers in Men’s Later Years: Transitions, Trajectories,and Historical Change.” Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences 48:S180–91.

    Google Scholar 

  • Flippen, Chenoa and Marta Tienda. 2000. “Pathways to Retirement: Patterns of Labor Force Participation and Labor Market Exit among The Pre-Retirement Poplation by Race, Hispanic Origin, And Sex.” Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences 55B:S14–27.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gibson, Rose. 1992. “Reconceptualizing Retirement for Black Americans.” The Gerontologist 27:691–98.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Guillemard, Anne-Marie and Martin Rein. 1993. “Comparative Patterns of Retirement: Recent Trends in Developed Societies.” Annual Review of Sociology 19:469–503.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Han, Shin-Kap and Phyllis Moen. 1999. “Clocking Out: Temporal Patterning of Retirement.” American Journal of Sociology 105(1):191–236.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hardy, Melissa. 2008. Making Work More Flexible: Opportunities and Evidence. Washington, DC: Public Policy Institute, AARP.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hardy, Melissa and Lawrence Hazelrigg. 2007. Pension Puzzles: Social Security and the Great Debate. New York, NY: Russell Sage Foundation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hardy, Melissa and Kim Shuey. 2000. “Pensions Decisions in a Changing Economy: Gender, Structure and Choice.” Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences 55:S271–77.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hardy, Melissa. 1991. “Employment After Retirement: Who Gets Back In?” Research on Aging 13(3):267–88.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hardy, Melissa, Lawrence Hazelrigg and Jill Quadagno. 1996. Ending a Career in the Auto Industry: “30 and Out.” New York: Plenum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hayward, Mark, William Grady and Steven MCLaughlin. 1988. “The Retirement Process among Older Women in the United States: Changes in the 1970s.” Research on Aging 10(3):358–82.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hayward, Mark, William Grady, Melissa Hardy and David Sommers. 1989. “Occupational Influences on Retirement, Disability, and Death.” Demography, 26(3):393–409.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hayward, Mark, Melissa Hardy and Mei-Chen Liu. 1994. “Work after Retirement: The Experiences of Older Men in the U.S.” Social Science Research 23:82–107.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hayward, Mark, Samantha Friedman and Hsinmu Chen. 1996. “Race Inequities in Men’s Retirement.” Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences 51B:S1–10.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Henretta, John and Angela O’Rand. 1983. “Joint Retirement in the Dual Worker Family.” Social Forces 62(2):504–20.

    Google Scholar 

  • Henretta, John, Angela O’Rand and Christopher Chan. 1993. “Joint Role Investments and Synchronization of Retirement: A Sequential Approach to Couples’ Retirement Timing.” Social Forces 71(4):981–1000.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hirsch, Barry, David MacPherson and Melissa Hardy. 2000. “Occupational Age Structure and Access for Older Workers: The Role of Compensation, Skills, and Working Conditions.” Industrial and Labor Relations Review 53:401–18.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Johnson, Richard and Corina Mommaerts. 2010. Fact Sheet on Retirement Policy. Retrieved February 12, 2010, from Urban Institute: http://www.urban.org/UploadedPDF/412010_retirement_benefit_awards.pdf

  • Kohli, Martin. 1987. “Retirement and the Moral Economy: An Historical Interpretation of the German Case.” Journal of Aging Studies 1:125–44.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kohli, Martin and Martin Rein, Anne-Marie Guillemard, and Herman van Gunstere, eds. 1991. Time for Retirement: Comparative Studies of Early Exit from The Labor Force. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Levine, Linda. 2008. Retiring Baby-Boomers = a Labor Shortage? Congressional Research Service, Domestic Social Policy Division. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office.

    Google Scholar 

  • Li, Xiaoyan, Michael Hurd and David Loughran. 2008. The Characteristics of Social Security Beneficiaries Who Claim Benefits at the Early Entitlement Age. Washington, D.C.: AARP.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mermin, Gordon, Richard Johnson and Dan Murphy. 2007. “Why Do Boomers Plan to Work Longer?” The Journals of Gerontology: Social Sciences 62B(5):S286–94.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mutchler, Jan, Jeffrey Burr, Amy Pienta and Michael Massagli. 1997. “Pathways to Labor Force Exit: Work Transitions and Work Instability.” Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences 52B:S4–12.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • O’Rand, Angela and John Henretta. 1999. Age and Inequality: Diverse Pathways Through Later Life. Boulder: Westview Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • O’Rand, Angela and John Henretta. 1982. “Delayed Career Entry, Industrial Pension Structure, and Early Retirement in a Cohort of Unmarried Women.” American Sociological Review 47:365–73.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Palmer, Edward. 2000. The Swedish Pension Reform Model Framework and Issues. Washington, D.C.: The World Bank.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pienta, Amy. 1999. “Early Childbearing Pattern and Women’s Labor Force Behavior in Later Life.” Journal of Women and Aging 11:69–83.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Quadagno, Jill and Melissa Hardy. 1991. “Regulating Retirement through the Age Discrimination in Employment Act.” Research on Aging 13(4):470–75.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Riley, Matilda White and John Riley. 1994. “Age Integration and the Lives of Older People.” The Gerontologist 34:110–15.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rogers, Teresa and Natalie Friedman. 1980. Printers Face Automation: The Impact of Technology on Work and Retirement among Skilled Craftsmen. Lexington, MA: Lexington Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Simpson, Peter. 2009. Swedish Pension Fund Warns of Payment Cuts. Retrieved February 10, 2010 (http://www.thelocal.se/17012/20090119).

  • Smith, Deborah and Phillis Moen. (1998). “Spousal Influence on Reitrement: His, Her, and Their Perceptions.” Journal of Marriage and Family 60(3):734–44.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Szinovacz, Maximilliane and Stanely DeViney. 1999. “The Retiree Identity: Gender and Race Differences.” Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences 54B:S207–18.

    Google Scholar 

  • Szinovacz, Maximilliane, David Ekerdt and Barbara Vinick. 1992. Families and Retirement. Newbury Park: Sage Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Taylor, Phillip. 2006. Development in Employment Initiatives for an Ageing Workforce: Cnsoloidated Analytical Report. Luxembourg: Office for Official Publications of the European Communities.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wong, Jen and Melissa Hardy. 2009. “Women’s Retirement Expectations: How Stable Are They?” Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences 64B(1):77–86.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology and Population Research Institute, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA

    Melissa Hardy

Authors
  1. Melissa Hardy
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Melissa Hardy .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Human Development and Family Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, 97331-2302, Oregon, USA

    Richard A. Settersten

  2. Dept. Sociology, University of Texas, Austin, University Station 1, Austin, 78712, Texas, USA

    Jacqueline L. Angel

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2011 Springer New York

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Hardy, M. (2011). Rethinking Retirement. In: Settersten, R., Angel, J. (eds) Handbook of Sociology of Aging. Handbooks of Sociology and Social Research. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-7374-0_14

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation