Between- and Within-Couple Concordance for Health Behaviors Among Japanese Older Married Couples: Examining the Moderating Role of Working Time

BACKGROUND

Although previous studies report spousal concordance for health behaviors at between-couple levels, concordance at within-couple levels remains unconfirmed. To clarify the behavioral mechanisms of spousal concordance for health behaviors among older couples at both levels, it is necessary to examine the moderators (effect modifiers) of spousal concordance. This study examined (1) whether spousal concordance for dietary variety, exercise behavior, and TV viewing behavior was observed at both the between-couple and the within-couple levels and (2) whether this spousal concordance was moderated by working time among older Japanese couples.

METHOD

This study analyzed data obtained from a questionnaire-based, three-wave longitudinal survey (baseline, 1-year follow-up, 3-year follow-up) among 210 Japanese older couples. Each spouse's dietary variety, exercise time, TV viewing time, the couple's working time, and demographic factors were investigated by multi-level analyses.

RESULTS

One spouse's dietary variety and TV viewing time, but not exercise time, were significantly associated with the other spouse's corresponding behaviors at both levels. The regressions of the wife's TV viewing time on the husband's TV viewing time were moderated by working time at the within-couple level; the regressive effects of wife's TV viewing time on husband's TV viewing time were more relevant as working time was lower.

CONCLUSION

This study found that spousal concordance for dietary variety and TV viewing was observed at within-couple and between-couple levels among older Japanese couples. In addition, shorter working time partly moderates the wife's influence on the husband's TV viewing among older couples at the within-couple level.

Impact of residing in neighborhoods of high social participation on health of retired workers: A multilevel analysis using nationwide longitudinal data in Japan

Retirement is a key determinant of health among middle-aged and older adults. Social participation (SP) has a favorable impact on health outcomes. Combining these two issues, we examined how neighborhood-level SP may affect the health outcomes of retired workers. We used 94,661 longitudinal observations of 13,185 full-time workers aged 50–59 years in 2005 from a nationwide 14-wave survey conducted in Japan from 2005 to 2018. First, we computed neighborhood SP using an econometric method. We then conducted multilevel analysis to examine how neighborhood SP, retirement, and their interaction affected the probabilities of SP, poor self-rated health (SRH), problems in activities of daily living (ADL), and psychological distress (SD). The estimation results showed that retirement in a high-SP neighborhood reduced the probabilities of poor SRH, ADL problems, and SD by 1.1 (95% confidence interval [CI]:0.5–1.7), 0.9 (95% CI:0.0–1.8), and 2.1 (95% CI:0.6–3.7) percentage points, respectively. These effects were substantial in magnitude, considering that the prevalence of poor SRH, ADL problems, and SD were 3.7%, 7.4%, and 18.5%, respectively, among retired men. In contrast, such interaction effects between retirement and neighborhood SP were not observed among the women. The results suggest that policy measures to encourage SP at the neighborhood level should be developed to help individuals enjoy a healthier life in retirement.

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Interaction between neighborhood social participation and retirement was examined.

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High neighborhood social participation enhanced health of retired workers.

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Impact of neighborhood social participation was observed mainly among men.

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Policy measures to encourage neighborhood social participation should be developed.

A Parsimonious Taxonomy of The Newly Retired: Spousal and Disability Combinations Shape Part or Complete Retirement

The inadequate classification of retiree sub-groups ultimately results in misaligned policy. To generate sets of sub-groups that may be appropriately targeted for policy and interventions, variables are used that reflect the social structure of retirees, particularly the options of partial and complete retirement, marital status, gender, as well as the retirement status of the spouse, where relevant, and disability. Three sets of longitudinal Australian data were combined, each reflecting a four-year period (2003-2007, 2007-2011, 2011-2015) during which the individuals aged 45 to 69 retired (n = 1179). A multiway frequency analysis was performed to develop an inductive, combinatorial model of retirement from work. The resulting parsimonious taxonomy of sub-groups of the newly retired reflected main effects and interactions of key social-structural variables. Notably, a key driver of the pattern of results was that couples tend to coordinate their retirement behavior in both the decision to retire and form of retirement. Non-partnered retirees were more likely to be women. Disability was also a driver of retirement for non-partnered retirees, regardless of gender. Identifying sub-groups based on combinations of retiree characteristics can better inform policy design, appropriate health promotion interventions and potential specific triggers for enacting those policies. Overall, marital status, spousal retirement behavior and disability may each present a more useful basis for a taxonomy of retirement than more individually oriented age- and wealth-based systems.

The effect of serving as a danwei leader before retirement on self-rated post-retirement health: empirical evidence from China

BACKGROUND

Worker health is often influenced by their occupation type, and the accumulative effect of occupation has a significant impact on their health after retirement. Studies show that the type and level of occupation before retirement directly impact workers' self-rated post-retirement health. However, there is little research on the self-rated post-retirement health of danwei leaders in China. This study seeks to examine the self-rated health level of Chinese danwei leaders after retirement. Furthermore, the differences between their self-rated health level and that of retirees from other occupations are explored by examining the accumulative effect of occupation and the mechanism underlying these differences.

METHODS

Based on 5,910 samples' data from the 2018 China Longitudinal Aging Social Survey, ordinary least squares, logit, and propensity score matching models are used to investigate the self-rated health level of Chinese danwei leaders after retirement, their differences with other occupations, and the corresponding mechanism.

RESULTS

The results show that retired danwei leaders have higher self-rated health levels than retirees in other occupations. This was mainly found among female, non-eastern, married, not living with children, and highly educated respondents. The difference in self-rated health between retired danwei leaders and other retired groups was influenced by their post-retirement income and social status.

CONCLUSIONS

In China, retired danwei leaders rated their health higher than retirees from other occupations. Danwei leaders have high socioeconomic status due to their occupation. Compared with other groups, their advantages are significant and enjoyed for a long time. Additionally, most danwei leaders have high social influence even after retirement and their higher income and social status have a positive impact on their self-rated health compared with other employees. This study provides empirical evidence from China and extends current literature on the effects of occupational type and level on self-rated health after retirement.

Growing into retirement: Longitudinal evidence for the importance of partner support for self-expansion

Retirement can be a turbulent time of life in which people must navigate changes in their identity from ending a career and beginning a new phase of life. However, retirement can also provide opportunities for growth or self-expansion. We examined the benefits of partner support for self-expansion by using longitudinal evidence (at 3 time points) in a sample of 73 couples. We tested a theoretical model proposing that partner support for self-expansion at Time 1 would predict retirement satisfaction and overall health 1 year later and that these effects would be mediated by self-expansion at 6 months. Using structural equation modeling, we found significant indirect effects for both retirement satisfaction and health, supporting all hypotheses. These results suggest that during retirement, partners play an important role in encouraging opportunities for growth as an investment toward future retirement satisfaction and health. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Partners' adjustment to older workers' retirement: testing the role of preretirement expectations in a 10-year panel study

Objectives: Retirement is not only an important later-life transition for the retiring individual, but also for his or her life partner. This study aims to improve our understanding of the partner's adjustment to the retirement of the older worker, by paying attention to the multidimensional nature of adjustment, and by examining to what extent preretirement expectations are predictive of postretirement experiences. Well-established adjustment predictors - i.e. preretirement resources and characteristics of the work and retirement context - are also taken into account. Method: Analyses are based on Dutch three-wave multi-actor panel data, collected between 2001 and 2011 among 724 partners of older workers who transitioned into retirement during the course of the study. Results: Only a minority of the partners reported adjustment difficulties to the retirement of the employee. About 20 percent reported at least some financial problems, 8 percent reported relationship problems, and 10 percent reported problems with shared leisure time. Expected problems in all three domains were predictive of experienced problems in the same domain. For expected financial problems, a cross-over effect was observed: expected financial problems were also predictive of experienced adjustment difficulties with regards to shared leisure activities. Conclusion: Not only the older worker, but also the partner develops expectations on different dimensions about the shared postretirement future, and these expectations are related to postretirement experiences. Retirement counseling may therefore not only be relevant for older workers, but also for their partners, and needs to take the multidimensional character of retirement processes into account.

Measuring and evaluating adjustment to retirement: a scoping review protocol

REVIEW QUESTION/OBJECTIVE

The objective of this review is to identify the available methods and instruments that are used to measure adjustment to retirement among retirees. This review will also find studies that use other methodological approaches to evaluate, measure and/or understand adjustment to retirement. The following specific questions will be addressed by this review.

Preparations for Old Age and Well-Being in Later Life in Thailand: Gender Matters?

Data from the 2011 Survey of Older Persons in Thailand examines the association between preparations for old age (financial, health, caregiving, living arrangements, and spiritual) and three measures of well-being: financial satisfaction, life satisfaction, and physical health. The study further explores the role of social stratification and the gendered nature of these relationships. The sample ( N = 10,235) is restricted to adults 60 years and above, who are retired and answered the survey independently. Multivariate logistic regression analyses indicate that different forms of preparation are positively associated with post-retirement well-being for men and women but socioeconomic resources are positively associated with all three well-being outcomes. Furthermore, for women, there are significant negative interaction effects of income and financial preparation on life satisfaction, as well as negative interaction effects of disability and caregiver preparation on self-rated health. Implications for long-term care, socioeconomic inequality, and gender inequality in paid labor are discussed.