Boomers, Seniors Can Live Better by Planning a
Retirement that Includes Some Type of Job
Those who keep working in retirement enjoy better
health, but do best mentally staying in original field
Oct. 22, 2009 Baby boomers and senior citizens
thinking about retirement may want to consider a temporary or part-time
job. Those who do will have fewer major disease and will enjoy better
day-to-day function than their contemporaries who choose to stop working
altogether, according to a new national study.
And, the researchers say, the findings are
significant even after controlling for people's physical and mental
health before retirement.
The study's authors refer to this transition
between career and complete retirement as "bridge employment," which can
be a part-time job, self-employment or a temporary job. The findings are
reported in the October issue of the Journal of Occupational Health
Psychology, published by the American Psychological Association.
"Given the economic recession, we will probably see
more people considering post-retirement employment," said co-author Mo
Wang, PhD, of the University of Maryland. "These findings highlight
bridge employment's potential benefits."
For this study, Wang and his fellow researchers
looked at the national Health and Retirement Study, which is sponsored
by the National Institute on Aging.
They used data from 12,189
participants who were between the ages of 51 and 61 at the beginning of
the study. The participants were interviewed every two years over a
six-year period beginning in 1992 about their health, finances,
employment history and work or retirement life.
In order to measure the respondents' health over
the course of the study, the researchers considered only
physician-diagnosed health problems, such as high blood pressure,
diabetes, cancer, lung disease, heart disease, stroke and psychiatric
problems.
They controlled not only for baseline physical and
mental health but also for age, sex, education level, and total
financial wealth. The results showed the retirees who continued to work
in a bridge job experienced fewer major diseases and fewer functional
limitations than those who fully retired.
The participants answered a basic mental health
questionnaire. The findings showed that people whose post-retirement
jobs were related to their previous careers reported better mental
health than those who fully retired.
These mental health improvements, however, were not
found among people who worked in jobs outside their career field
post-retirement. The authors say this may be because retirees who take
jobs not related to their career field may need to adapt to a different
work environment or job conditions and, therefore, become more stressed.
Also, Wang has found retirees with financial
problems are more likely to work in a different field after they
officially retire.
"Rather than wanting to work in a different field,
they may have to work," said Wang. "In such situations, it's difficult
for retirees to enjoy the benefits that come with bridge employment."
The authors suggest that, when possible, retirees carefully consider
their choice of post-retirement employment.
"Choosing a suitable type of bridge employment will
help retirees transition better into full retirement and in good
physical and mental health," said co-author Kenneth Shultz, PhD, adding
that employers who are concerned about a labor shortage due to numerous
baby boomers retiring might consider bridge employment options for their
retirees.
Article: "Bridge
Employment and Retirees' Health: A Longitudinal Investigation," Yujie
Zhan, MS, Mo Wang, PhD, and Songqi Liu, MS, University of Maryland;
Kenneth S. Shultz, PhD, California State University, San Bernardino;
Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, Vol. 14, No. 4.
The American
Psychological Association, in Washington, D.C., is the largest
scientific and professional organization representing psychology in the
United States and is the worlds largest association of psychologists.
APAs membership includes more than 150,000 researchers, educators,
clinicians, consultants and students. Through its divisions in 54
subfields of psychology and affiliations with 60 state, territorial and
Canadian provincial associations, APA works to advance psychology as a
science, as a profession and as a means of promoting health, education
and human welfare.
Keep up with the latest news for senior citizens, baby
boomers
Oct. 22, 2009 Baby boomers and senior citizens
thinking about retirement may want to consider a temporary or part-time
job. Those who do will have fewer major disease and will enjoy better
day-to-day function than their contemporaries who choose to stop working
altogether, according to a new national study.