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Dissertation Information for Melissa A. Hardy

NAME:
- Melissa A. Hardy
- (Alias) Melissa Ann Hardy

DEGREE:
- Ph.D.

DISCIPLINE:
- Sociology

SCHOOL:
- Indiana University (USA) (1980)

ADVISORS:
- None

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
- None

MPACT Status: Incomplete - Inspected

Title: THE STRUCTURE OF RETIREMENT: A LONGITUDINAL STUDY OF SOCIOECONOMIC FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE THE RETIREMENT DECISIONS OF OLDER MALES

Abstract: "This research attempts to integrate relevant theoretical perspectives and methodological techniques from economics into a sociological study of retirement behavior. The 1969, 1971, 1973 and 1975 waves of the National Longitudinal Survey of older men are analyzed by means of both cross-sectional and longitudinal designs. I look at white males aged 45 to 59 in 1966 and, using alternative conceptualizations of retirement, place major emphasis on the influence of structural features that serve to organize the work experience of older men. Retirement is approached in two ways. First, it is approached through labor supply--that is, hours worked per year--which allows maximum flexibility in analytic conception of the retirement process. A generalized version of Tobit analysis is used to estimate these retirement models. Second, retirement is approached through several categorization schemes of labor force participation which are devised to capture major choices in work behavior. These models are estimated by binary and multinomial logit analyses. The analytic designs make use of both an age cohort structure (defined by ages of benefit eligibility) and a birth cohort structure.

I have argued that the retirement process is more complex than the simple choice of labor force participation or withdrawal. Instead, retirement denotes a kind of occupational status that involves different kinds of costs and rewards for different categories of workers. The attempts of older workers to maximize the benefits and minimize the costs of retirement are limited by the opportunity structures they face. Of the factors considered, health limitations and retirement policies have the strongest negative effects on the work activity of older men. The negative effect of health limitations generally increases with the age of the cohort; by 1975, the largest effects are associated with ages of benefit eligibility. In addition, retired men reporting health limitations are much less likely to be entitled to pension benefits other than Social Security. The retirement policy variables denoting compulsory retirement and pension eligibility as well as pension eligibility without compulsory retirement also have a strong negative effect on both labor supply and continued labor force participation. The effects of the joint policies are stronger than the effects of pension coverage alone; the findings also suggest an interaction of the joint policies with reduced benefit eligibility. The strongest positive effect is associated with self employment. Self employed workers are more likely to be in the labor force working relatively demanding schedules; they are also more likely to be taking advantage of positions of quasi-retirement. The over time patterns of results suggest the importance of more general economic conditions and changes in Social Security legislation for work decisions."

MPACT Scores for Melissa A. Hardy

A = 0
C = 1
A+C = 1
T = 0
G = 0
W = 0
TD = 0
TA = 0
calculated 2008-01-31 06:05:51

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