How to measure retirement age? : a comparison of survey and register data

Due to an increasing heterogeneity in retirement transitions, the measurement of retirement age constitutes a major challenge for researchers and policymakers. In order to better understand the concept of retirement age, we compare a series of measures for retirement age assessed on the basis of survey and register data. We use data from Sweden, where flexible retirement schemes are implemented and register data are available. We link survey data from the Swedish Level of Living Survey with register data from the Swedish Longitudinal Integration Database for Health Insurance and Labour Market Studies. We create four measures of retirement age based on these datasets, applying approaches that have been used in previous literature. We analyse the means and distributions of these measures and evaluate the correlations between them. Finally, we regress common predictors of retirement age such as gender or education on the four measures of retirement age to examine potential differences in size, direction and statistical significance of the associations. We find that the survey measure of retirement age resembles the following two ways of defining retirement age in the register data: first, the age at which people receive more than half their income from old-age or disability pension and second, the age at which they were not gainfully employed for at least two years. This insight gives us a better understanding of when in the retirement transition process individuals identify with retirement. Moreover, it provides decision support for researchers working with register data to determine which measure to use

Prolongation of working life and its effect on mortality and health in older adults : propensity score matching

Many countries are raising the age of pension eligibility because of increases in life expectancy. Given the social gradient in life expectancy and health, it is important to understand the potential late-life health effects of prolonging working life and whether any effects differ by socioeconomic position. We examined the effect of prolonging working life beyond age 65 on mortality and a series of indicators of late-life physical health (the ability to climb stairs without difficulty, self-rated health, ADL limitations, and musculoskeletal pain) in a representative sample of the Swedish population. In addition to average effects, we also examined heterogeneous effects, for instance by occupational social class. To do this, we use propensity score matching, a method suitable for addressing causality in observational data. The data came from two linked Swedish longitudinal surveys based on nationally representative samples with repeated follow-ups; The Swedish Level of Living Survey and the Swedish Panel Study of Living conditions of the Oldest Old, and from national income and mortality registries. The analytical sample for the mortality outcome included 1852 people, and for late-life physical health outcomes 1461 people. We found no significant average treatment effect on the treated (ATT) of working to age 66 or above on the outcomes, measured an average of 12 years after retirement: mortality (ATT -0.039), the ability to climb stairs (ATT -0.023), self-rated health (ATT -0.009), ADL limitations (ATT -0.023), or musculoskeletal pain (ATT -0.009) in late life. Analyses of whether the results varied by occupational social class or the propensity to prolong working life were inconclusive but suggest a positive effect of prolonging working life on health outcomes. Accordingly, more detailed knowledge about the precise mechanisms underlying these results are needed. In conclusion, working to age 66 or above did not have effect on mortality or late-life physical health

Heavy alcohol consumption before and after negative life events in late mid-life : longitudinal latent trajectory analyses

Background People who experience negative life events report more heavy alcohol consumption compared with people without these experiences, but little is known about patterns of change within this group. This study aims to identify trajectories of heavy alcohol consumption before and after experiencing either divorce, or severe illness or death in the family. Furthermore, the aim is to examine characteristics of individuals belonging to each trajectory. Methods Longitudinal study of public sector employees from the Finnish Retirement and Aging Study with up to 5 years of annual follow-ups (n=6783; eligible sample n=1393). Divorce and severe illness or death in the family represented negative life events. Heavy alcohol consumption was categorised as >14 units/week. Results Based on latent trajectory analysis, three trajectories of heavy drinking were identified both for divorce and for severe illness or death in the family: 'No heavy drinking' (82% illness/death, 75% divorce), 'Constant heavy drinking' (10% illness/death, 13% divorce) and 'Decreasing heavy drinking' (7% illness/death, 12% divorce). Constant heavy drinkers surrounding illness or death in the family were more likely to be men, report depression and anxiety and to smoke than those with no heavy drinking. Constant heavy drinkers surrounding divorce were also more likely to be men and to report depression compared with those with no heavy drinking. Conclusions Most older workers who experience divorce or severe illness or death in the family have stable drinking patterns regarding heavy alcohol consumption, that is, most do not initiate or stop heavy drinking.Peer reviewe

Physical functioning as a predictor of retirement: Has its importance changed over a thirty-year period in Sweden?

Open access funding provided by Karolinska Institute. This work was supported by the Social Inequalities in Ageing (SIA) project, funded by NordForsk, [74637] and the Swedish Research Council for Health, Working Life and Welfare (FORTE) (2019-01100). The financial sponsors played no role in the design, execution, data analysis and interpretation, nor in the writing of the study.Peer reviewe

Part-time work and health in late careers : evidence from a longitudinal and cross-national study

In this exploratory study, we examine how older workers' part-time employment and health are associated in four countries promoting this type of employment in late careers but with a different welfare regime: the United States, Germany, Sweden, and Italy. Using data from two large representative panel surveys and conducting multichannel sequence analysis, we identified the most typical interlocked employment and health trajectories for each welfare regime and for three different age groups of women and men. We found that there is more heterogeneity in these trajectories in countries with a liberal welfare regime and among older age groups. Overall, women are more strongly represented in the part-time employment trajectories associated with lower health levels. In countries with a social-democratic or corporatist welfare regime, part-time employment in late careers tends to be associated with good health. Our findings suggest that the combination of a statutory right to work part-time in late careers with a more generous welfare regimes, may simultaneously maintain workers’ health and motivate them to remain active in the labor force

Heavy alcohol consumption before and after negative life events in late mid-life: longitudinal latent trajectory analyses

Background People who experience negative life events report more heavy alcohol consumption compared with people without these experiences, but little is known about patterns of change within this group. This study aims to identify trajectories of heavy alcohol consumption before and after experiencing either divorce, or severe illness or death in the family. Furthermore, the aim is to examine characteristics of individuals belonging to each trajectory. Methods Longitudinal study of public sector employees from the Finnish Retirement and Aging Study with up to 5 years of annual follow-ups (n=6783; eligible sample n=1393). Divorce and severe illness or death in the family represented negative life events. Heavy alcohol consumption was categorised as >14 units/week. Results Based on latent trajectory analysis, three trajectories of heavy drinking were identified both for divorce and for severe illness or death in the family: 'No heavy drinking' (82% illness/death, 75% divorce), 'Constant heavy drinking' (10% illness/death, 13% divorce) and 'Decreasing heavy drinking' (7% illness/death, 12% divorce). Constant heavy drinkers surrounding illness or death in the family were more likely to be men, report depression and anxiety and to smoke than those with no heavy drinking. Constant heavy drinkers surrounding divorce were also more likely to be men and to report depression compared with those with no heavy drinking. Conclusions Most older workers who experience divorce or severe illness or death in the family have stable drinking patterns regarding heavy alcohol consumption, that is, most do not initiate or stop heavy drinking.</p

Do cognitively stimulating activities affect the association between retirement timing and cognitive functioning in old age?

In response to the rising financial pressure on old-age pension systems in industrialised economies, many European countries plan to increase the eligibility age for retirement pensions. We used data from Sweden to examine whether (and if so, how) retirement after age 65 – the eligibility age for basic pension – compared to retiring earlier affects older adults’ (between ages 70 and 85) cognitive functioning. Using a propensity score matching (PSM) approach, we addressed the selection bias potentially introduced by non-random selection into either early or late retirement. We also examined average and heterogeneous treatment effects (HTEs). HTEs were evaluated for different levels of cognitive stimulation from occupational activities before retirement and from leisure activities after retirement. We drew from a rich longitudinal data-set linking two nationally representative Swedish surveys with a register data-set and found that, on average, individuals who retire after age 65 do not have a higher level of cognitive functioning than those who retire earlier. Similarly, we did not observe HTEs from occupational activities. With respect to leisure activities, we found no systematic effects on cognitive functioning among those working beyond age 65. We conclude that, in general, retirement age does not seem to affect cognitive functioning in old age. Yet, the rising retirement age may put substantial pressure on individuals who suffer from poor health at the end of their occupational career, potentially exacerbating social- and health-related inequalities among older people

Aktiv och frisk eller frisk och aktiv? Äldre personers fritidsaktiviteter och sambandet med hälsa

Fritidsaktiviteters positiva samband med välbefinnande, hälsa och överlevnad har påvisats i många studier. En aktiv livsstil är förenat med bättre hälsa och längre liv, även bland äldre personer. För kvinnor är det fördelaktigt att delta i aktiviteter tillsammans med andra, och hälsofördelarna tycks kvarstå även efter att aktiviteten upphört. Äldre personer deltar i ett brett spektrum av fritidsaktiviteter, bland de vanligaste är promenader, bokläsning och umgänge med släkt och vänner. Det finns många indikationer att morgondagens äldre kommer att vara mer aktiva och resursstarka än dagens, med högre förväntningar och större krav på tillvaron. Tiden efter pensioneringen lär i allt större utsträckning betraktas som en förvärvad fritid snarare än en förlust av arbete.Many studies have shown positive associations between leisure activities and well-being, health and survival. An active lifestyle is coupled with better health and a longer life, also among older individuals. Women seem to benefit from leisure activities that involve contact with other persons, and health benefits last beyond the activity itself. Older persons participate in a wide variety of leisure activities, among the most common are taking walks, reading books and spending time with family and friends. There are many indications that coming cohorts of older persons will be more active and resourceful, with higher expectations and demands on late-life pursuits. The time after retirement will increasingly be viewed as the attainment of leisure rather than the loss of employment

Leisure in late life : Patterns of participation and relationship with health

The overall aim of this thesis was to investigate aspects of leisure participation in late life. More specifically, differences in participation rates between two cohorts of older adults and changes in leisure activities from middle age to old age were examined, as well as the association between leisure activities and survival. All studies used nationally representative data from the Level of Livings Surveys (LNU) and SWEOLD studies, which together comprise a longitudinal database where individuals have been followed from 1968 to 2004. Forecasts have suggested that coming cohorts of older adults will be more active and resourceful than earlier cohorts. In line with this proposition, Study I showed that older individuals in 2002 were more engaged in leisure activities than their predecessors ten years earlier. The higher level of leisure participation was not due to improvements in health, since health status was worse in the more recent cohort. Despite the late-life transitions of retirement, bereavement and disability, individuals seem to preserve patterns of habits and activities with increasing age. Study II followed individuals over a 34-year period with regard to participation in different leisure activities. Although participation levels declined for the group as a whole, individuals maintained their activities to a large extent. Activities in middle age were more important than late-life functional ability in predicting leisure participation in old age. Thus, although there is considerable variation between individuals and activities, participation in old age is often a continuation of earlier participation. Positive effects of activities on well-being, health and survival have been reported. Studies III and IV investigated the association between activities and survival among older individuals. In Study III, people aged 65 and older and participating in only a few activities had a doubled mortality risk compared to those with the highest participation levels, even after controlling for age, education and health indicators. Women benefited more from activities involving social interaction, while men seemed to benefit from solitary activities. As late-life leisure activities seem to be a continuation of earlier habits, late-life benefits of activities may be due to earlier participation. Thus, Study IV examined the health associations with both earlier and recent activities. Individuals were followed for twenty years until the age of 77 or older. Recent and earlier participation in activities were analyzed with regard to four-year mortality. Stronger associations were found between recent leisure participation and survival, especially for men. Results remained after controls for age, education, health indicators, changes in health status, and lifestyle. Among women, earlier participation in activities involving social interaction was associated with a lower mortality risk. While men seemed to benefit from recent leisure participation in line with the disuse hypothesis, women benefited from earlier participation, supporting the reserve hypothesis. The expanding leisure pursuits of new cohorts will increase demands on authorities and organizations to provide opportunities for activity participation and to address accessibility issues. Considering the accumulated evidence suggesting health benefits from activities, especially physical and social activities, health promotion programs targeting middle-aged and older individuals may be worthwhile

A prospective cohort study of health behavior profiles after age 50 and mortality risk

Abstract Background This study examines the mortality risk associated with distinct combinations of multiple risk behaviors in middle-aged and older adults, and assesses whether the mortality risks of certain health behaviors are moderated by the presence of other risk behaviors. Methods Data for this prospective cohort study are from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), a nationwide sample of adults older than 50 years. Baseline data are from respondents (n = 19,662) to the 1998 wave of the HRS. Twelve distinct health behavior profiles were created, based on each respondent’s smoking, physical activity, and alcohol use status in 1998. Mortality risk was estimated through 2008 using Cox regression. Results Smoking was associated with elevated risk for mortality within all behavioral profiles, but risk was greatest when combined with heavy drinking, both for middle-aged (ages 51–65) and older (ages 66+) adults. Profiles that included physical inactivity were also associated with increased mortality risk in both age groups. However, the impact of inactivity was clearly evident only among non-smokers; among smokers, the risk of inactivity was less evident, and seemingly overshadowed by the risk of smoking. Moderate drinking was protective relative to abstinence among non-smokers, and relative to heavy drinking among smokers. Conclusions In both middle-aged and older adults, multiple unhealthy behaviors increase mortality risk. However, the level of risk varies across unique combinations of unhealthy behaviors. These findings highlight the role that lifestyle improvements could play in promoting healthy aging, and provide insight into which behavioral combinations should receive top priority for intervention.</p