Older Swedes: Living in the ‘role model of welfare states’

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Breadwinner Models Revisited : How a Couple’s Combined Work Histories Influence the Retirement Transition

As populations age, policymakers seek to stabilize pensions systems by encouraging late retirement and discouraging early economic inactivity. This study takes a novel approach to exploring an individual's retirement transition into pension or early economic inactivity, locating individual choices in relation to their breadwinner status. It explores gender and country differences in Dutch, Spanish, and Swedish life-history data, which show that men who work less than their partners and dual earners retire into pension. Breadwinner status is particularly relevant in the Netherlands and for early retirement.Peer reviewe

The commercialization of sociological research : on the how and why (not)

Recent budget cuts in academia and the spread of neoliberal thought has put pressure on sociology. Unlocking new funding sources is a major concern for sociologists and focusing on funding from the market is a prominent suggestion. Such funding can be generated through research commercialization, that is, developing research findings into products and services that can be sold on the market. This study explores how a commercialization of sociological research can be achieved, and what advantages and disadvantages it has. Methods are expert interviews and participant observation. Findings show that a commercialization of sociological research can be achieved through studies on companies or products, and through the participation in multidisciplinary research projects. The proponents of commercialization are mainly university administrations, consultants, and economists, who see advantages in the acquisition of funding and the improvement of products. The adversaries of commercialization are sociologists, who find a commercialization antithetical to their disciplinary identity, have ethical concerns about aggravating social problems as a side-effect, and fear for their academic careers. In conclusion, a commercialization of sociological research needs to proceed circumspectly, considering that it could internally erode the discipline of sociology.Peer reviewe

Finland

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Capturing the diversity of working age life-courses : A European perspective on cohorts born before 1945

Life-courses describe people’s activities from the cradle to the grave. Because life-courses are typically complex, models are used to simplify their description. The most commonly used model is tripartite, representing lives in subsequent periods of education, work, and retirement. However, researchers criticize this model as limited in the activities considered, overly simplistic in the activity sequence, and blind to variation between life-courses. This article explores working age life-courses, which typically show high diversity. Multichannel sequence and cluster analyses are conducted on people’s activities from age 15 to 65. Data stem from the life-history interviews of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe, capturing cohorts born before 1945. Findings show that three out of four working age life-courses are in line with the tripartite model. This share is particularly high among men, the cohort born 1935 to 1944, and in Northern and Eastern Europe. In contrast, a considerable share of women spent their working age on homemaking, especially women born before 1935, and those living in Southern Europe. Finally, a smaller number of men spent their working age on paid work, followed by a period of illness or of non-employment. The working age life-course patterns identified are used to develop alternative life-course models. However, for a parsimonious solution, the use of two models suffices. A combination of the tripartite model and the model equating middle age to homemaking captures the lives of more than nine out of ten older Europeans. The prevalence of working age life-course patterns in a population is country-specific, and the country differences align with the welfare regimes. This perspective makes working age life-courses characteristics of a society that can be used to map social inequalities at the macro-level and capture social change over time.Peer reviewe

The master narrative of older employees in changing workplaces

Purpose Interest in older employees increases in times of population ageing. Previous research exploring the situation has underlined older employees' struggle with workplace changes. However, it has not explored their master narrative - the socially shared narrative about older employees that steers behaviour. This study explores this narrative and its differences across changing workplaces. It draws on Lyotard's suggestion that master narratives disintegrate in post-modern societies. Design/methodology/approach This study conducts focus groups among older Finnish employees of an airline, postal service and social care. These groups experienced different kinds of workplace changes, namely mass layoffs, digitalisation and restructuring. The focus groups highlight the individuals' shared narratives, thereby pinpointing the master narrative. Findings The master narrative describes how simultaneous changes at the workplace and in their health lead older employees to look for ways to exit their jobs. This narrative is largely stable across workplaces, showing no disintegration but some variation. Originality/value This is the first study on the master narrative of older employees and its disintegration. To the authors' knowledge, it is also the first study to use focus groups to explore a master narrative.Peer reviewe

Self-employment and Adaptation to Transformative Digitalization during Later Working Life

In Europe, the self-employed typically have greater career longevity than employees. In Finland, self-employment is becoming more prevalent among older workers. Digitalization complicates the workforce attachment of older workers because of the need to acquire new skills and manage technological interruptions. Few studies have explored how self-employed workers are affected by digitalization. First, this article explores what aspects of transformative digitalization are challenging for the self-employed in particular. Second, it identifies strategies used by the older self-employed to address digitalization-related challenges. The study presents three case studies of self-employed Finns aged over 60. While each participant adopted new digital technologies at work, they spent different amounts of time managing technological interruptions. The study shows that diverse technological requirements of different clients increase the digital complexity at work for the self-employed, and that the self-employed pursue diverse strategies to manage digitalization-related work demands, ranging from avoidance of technology to technological specialization

Perspectives on Financial Retirement Planning across Age Groups: Pension Concerns and Responsibility

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A Case of Intergenerational Conflict : The 2015 Finnish Citizens’ Initiative on Pension Indexation

Pension reforms become more common in times of population aging. In 2015, a Finnish citizens’ initiative recommended increasing pension benefits. Opponents argued this may be at the cost of youths and middle-agers. We investigate the initiative from the viewpoint of intergenerational conflict. A mixed methods analysis reveals no conflict during the signature collection. It only became visible during the newspaper debate, when experts explained the reform effects. The parliament rejected the reform. Findings reveal a unique conflict dynamic in citizens’ initiatives: a reflected judgment gradually emerges during the public debate. Policymakers may use this insight to advance pension-related direct democracy.Peer reviewe