Preretirement Planning and Well-Being in Later Life

Abstract

Cross-sectional and retrospective research has identified a reliable relationship between preretirement planning and later-life well-being. Although it seems intuitive that retirement planning leads to more positive retirement outcomes, limited longitudinal analysis has confirmed the directionality of this relationship or clarified its complexities. The Health and Retirement Study, a prospective survey of American workers and retirees from 1992 to the present, can help illuminate this relationship. Data signifying the preretirement activities of employed individuals from the 1992 wave were compared with their postretirement ratings of retirement satisfaction and subjective physical and emotional health in 2004. An ordinal regression analysis indicated that those who had discussed retirement with their spouses and had retirement superannuation or savings plans in 1992 reported greater well-being in 2004 (controlling for health status, the reason for retirement, and income in 1992). These results confirm the importance of preretirement preparation and provide a rationale for developing more comprehensive, theory-driven measures of retirement planning.