سازمان ادراک شده در رفتار آشامیدنی بازنشسته و دوران بازنشستگی : رضایت شغلی به عنوان یک مدیر

Based on recent findings that post-retirement adjustment may be influenced by the conditions leading up to the decision to retire, we examine the impact of individual agency in the retirement decision on problematic drinking behavior, as well as the extent to which such an effect may itself depend upon the valence of the pre-retirement work experience. Using a sample of 304 blue-collar retirees, our findings indicate that, when controlling for pre-retirement drinking behavior, perceptions of retirement as the result of a more forced or involuntary decision are associated with greater alcohol consumption, while perceptions of retirement as the result of a more volitional or voluntary process are associated with lower levels of alcohol consumption and a lower risk of problematic drinking behavior. Our results also indicate that pre-retirement job satisfaction amplifies the former relationship, while attenuating the latter one.

Recent research indicates that a significant proportion of retirees perceive their retirement as forced or involuntary (Isaksson & Johansson, 2000), and that the implications of agency in retirement on retiree emotional well-being (van Solinge & Henkens, 2007) and health (Gallo et al., 2006 and van Solinge, 2007) are significant. However, despite the evidence that approximately 10% of males over the age of 65 are heavy drinkers (Breslow, Faden, & Smothers, 2003), and that Alcohol Use Disorders (AUDs—a term adopted by the American Psychiatric Association to encompass both alcohol dependence and alcohol abuse) are becoming increasingly prevalent among older adults (Conigliaro, Kraemer, and McNeil (2000) report an AUD prevalence rate of 10–15% among older adults presenting to hospital emergency rooms in the United States and posing an increasingly significant public health concern (American Medical Association Council on Academic Affairs, 1996), the impact of agency in retirement on the drinking behavior of older adults remains unstudied. The absence of research examining the impact of agency in retirement on retiree drinking behavior is particularly salient in that the general impact of retirement on the drinking behavior of older people remains poorly understood. Specifically, while several studies suggest that retirement is associated with reduced alcohol consumption (e.g., Adams, 1996), other studies report the opposite (e.g., Perreira & Sloan, 2001), and still others suggest that there is no causal link between these variables (Ekerdt, de Labry, Glynn, & Davis, 1989). To the extent that, as noted above, retirement agency explains other health-related outcomes in retirement; it may serve as a critical factor resolving such inconsistencies in the literature on retirement and drinking as well. Although there is significant evidence that older adults may use alcohol as a means by which to self-medicate stressful life events (Perreira & Sloan, 2001) or dysphoric situations (Ekerdt et al., 1989), there is also general consensus that while retirement may be viewed as dysphoric to some, it may be viewed as precisely the opposite (i.e., a condition offering relief from stress or depression) by others (Bacharach et al., 2007 and Shultz et al., 1998). Thus the key to understand just when or for whom retirement is likely to be linked with increased alcohol consumption or problem drinking is likely to be contingent upon the identification of those factors explaining why retirement may be stressful or dysphoric to some but not to others. Consistent with the literature on agency in retirement noted above, we posit that the degree to which retirees view their decision to retire as voluntary (pulled) or involuntary (pushed) may serve as one such factor. However, building on general principles of comparison (Jasso, 1990) and framing (Goffman, 1974), we extend such notions of retirement agency by proposing that the extent to which a sense of being forced into retirement may be associated with a more dysphoric retirement experience (and hence an increased risk of problematic drinking) may itself depend on the individual’s perception of pre-retirement conditions. Paraphrasing Sen (1987), p. 45, an “over-exhausted collie” may “take pleasures in small mercies”, perhaps even when such “mercies” are forced upon him. Consequently, in this paper, we seek to contribute to the retirement literature in two ways: (1) To apply Shultz et al. (1998) “push–pull” theory of retirement agency to explain divergent findings regarding the relationship between retirement and problematic drinking behaviors, and (2) to extend this theory by incorporating elements of comparison and framing theories, examining the extent to which the impact of retirement agency on retiree drinking behavior may be contingent upon the valence of the pre-retirement work experience. 1.1. The perceived voluntariness of retirement and alcohol-based self-medication Previous research suggests that the impact of retirement on individuals’ psychological well-being is largely driven by the degree to which individuals’ actual labor force participation matches their desired participation (Herzog, House, & Morgan, 1991), or in other words, the degree to which individuals perceive their retirement as resulting from a voluntary or involuntary decision on their part. Although one might argue that with the decline of mandatory retirement regulations, all retirement decisions are by their very nature “voluntary”, empirical findings suggest that this may not necessarily be the case (van Solinge & Henkens, 2007). For example, in the Netherlands, Theeuwes and Linndeboom (1995) found that approximately 25% of the retired workers were more or less forced to retire by their employer. There is substantial empirical support for the idea that retirement agency influences retirement adjustment and retiree emotional well-being. For example, whereas involuntary workforce disengagement is associated with poorer physical and mental health (e.g., Gallo et al., 2001 and Herzog et al., 1991), Dooley and Prause (1997) demonstrated that when self-initiated, retirement can offer relief from employment-related negative emotional states and consequently enhance the well-being. Moreover, voluntary retirees are more likely to report that their standard of living in retirement has at least maintained pre-retirement levels (Shultz et al., 1998), and that their psychological well-being has even improved after retiring (Floyd et al., 1992). Building on this notion that the objective voluntariness of the retirement decision may serve as a key predictor of retirement outcomes, Shultz et al. (1998) demonstrated empirical support for a “push–pull” theory of retirement, indicating that how individuals perceive the voluntariness and involuntariness of their retirement decision, also has an impact upon their retirement adjustment and well-being. According to this theory, perceived agency in retirement can be conceptualized in terms of two factors, i.e., the degree to which individuals frame retirement as something involuntary, or “pushed” upon them, and the degree to which retirement is framed as something voluntary, or to which they were “pulled” (Williamson, Rinehart, & Black, 1992). Those perceiving themselves as having been more “pushed” into retirement may experience retirement as more dysphoric than those perceiving themselves as having been more “pulled” into retirement Notably, Shultz et al. (1998) suggest that while for most individuals, the retirement decision is a function of both “push” and “pull” motivations, the relative strength of each is likely to influence one’s retirement experiences and hence the well-being in retirement. Recent research (Bacharach et al., 2007 and Perreira and Sloan, 2001) suggests that to the extent that retirement is experienced as a dysphoric life event, it may have adverse consequences on older adults’ drinking behavior. The stress-drinking paradigm (Frone, 1999) underlies this linkage, suggesting that, particularly for older adults maintaining positive alcohol expectations (Bacharach et al., 2007), drinking may serve as a means by which to self-medicate such negative emotional states. The use of alcohol as a mode of self-medication may be particularly salient among retired individuals (Richman, Zlatoper, Zackula Ehmke, & Rospenda, 2006). While for employed individuals, formal organizational policies and informal norms may regulate alcohol consumption and hence drinking as a means of coping with stress or dysphoria (Bacharach, Bamberger, & Sonnenstuhl, 2001), for retirees, the lack of such employment-related constraints may provide greater opportunities for alcohol-based self-medication. Consequently, we posit: Hypothesis 1a. The more retirees view themselves as having been involuntarily forced (i.e., “pushed”) into retirement, the greater the increase in alcohol consumption and problematic drinking behavior following retirement. Hypothesis 1b. The more retirees view their retirement as the outcome of voluntary process (i.e., being “pulled” into retirement), the smaller the increase in alcohol consumption and problematic drinking behavior following retirement. 1.2. The moderating role of job satisfaction prior to retirement Retirement scholars have also proposed that well-being in retirement may be influenced not only by the degree of retirement agency, but by the valence of the pre-retirement (i.e., employment) condition (van Solinge, 2007) as well. Such a notion is consistent with comparison theories in sociology and social psychology (Adams, 1963 and Jasso, 1990) as well as Goffman (1974) notion of “framing”, all of which suggest that the impact of retirement on well-being is likely to be context-dependent. Such a notion is also consistent with the lifespan perspective in retirement research which suggests that, “individuals are not only influenced by present contexts, but also by earlier life events and experiences” (Kloep & Hendry, 2006, 590). Accordingly, individuals are likely to experience more negative emotions when retirement is framed as a “loss” (i.e., the current, retirement situation falls short of the prior, work-based situation), and more positive emotions when retirement is framed as a “relief” (i.e., the present situation compares positively against the work-based referent). Interestingly, however, longitudinal studies have yet to uncover evidence of a direct effect of pre-retirement job characteristics and attitudes on retiree well-being (van Solinge, 2007). Nevertheless, aside from a direct effect on retiree well-being, it is conceivable that pre-retirement job attitudes may also exert an indirect effect, conditioning the effects of retirement agency on retiree well-being. That is, again building on the context-dependency notion inherent in framing theory (Goffman, 1974), the aversive nature of involuntary retirement may vary depending on individual perceptions of the pre-retirement work situation. To the extent that this situation is perceived as aversive, even retirement motivated largely by push factors may be framed as providing a sense of relief, with the result being the attenuation of the negative effects of involuntary retirement (i.e., increased problematic drinking). In contrast, framing theory suggests the adverse effects of involuntary retirement on retiree drinking behavior may be amplified to the extent that individuals’ pre-retirement work-situation is deemed positive. Such framing effects are also likely to come in to play when the retirement decision is motivated more by pull than push factors. In particular, the expected inverse association between retirement pull and the change in problematic drinking is likely to be amplified when the pre-retirement, work situation is framed as more negative in that with the relief offered by voluntary disengagement likely to be greater under such conditions, the need for self-medication is likely to be diminished. Similarly, opposite (i.e., attenuation) effects may be expected under conditions of retirement pull from a positively-framed job, in that, even though the decision to retire is based on one’s volition, one may still experience a sense of “loss”, with this sense attenuating the generally inverse effect of retirement pull on problematic drinking. Conceptualizing valence in terms of the degree to which a given situation or outcome satisfies an individual’s needs and values (Vroom, 1964), job satisfaction is likely to provide a broad indication of individuals’ pre-retirement job valence (Locke, 1976). Indeed, job satisfaction has been defined as reflecting individuals’ affective reaction to various aspects of the job or employment situation (Hackman & Oldham, 1980). Moreover, because job satisfaction is considered an important predictor of withdrawal-related attitudes and behaviors, (e.g., Hackman & Oldham, 1980), it is likely to serve as a valid metric for assessing the degree to which, prior to disengagement from their work, individuals framed their work situation in terms of more positive or negative attitudes. As such, the logic above suggests the following hypotheses: Hypothesis 2a. The positive association between a sense of being pushed into retirement and the change in alcohol consumption and problematic drinking behavior following retirement is amplified as a function of pre-retirement job satisfaction. Hypothesis 2b. The inverse association between a sense of being pulled into retirement and the change in alcohol consumption and problematic drinking behavior following retirement is attenuated as a function of pre-retirement job satisfaction.

Despite these limitations, our findings have important implications for research and practice. With regard to research, our findings shed light on at least two factors likely to condition the impact of retirement on the drinking behavior of older adults. Given the equivocal nature of recent findings regarding the impact of retirement, the results reported above suggest that both retirement agency and the cognitive framing of the pre-retirement situation (i.e., work-related attitudes and perceptions) are likely to play an important role in shaping the impact of retirement on the drinking behavior of older adults, with the latter conditioning the effects of the former. While there are likely to be numerous other work- and non-work-related factors conditioning the impact of retirement on drinking, the current study is significant in that it is the first to demonstrate the potential salience of such factors on problematic drinking. It is also significant in that it is the first study to demonstrate that the effects of retirement agency on an important parameter of retirement adjustment are themselves likely to be contingent upon individuals’ cognitive framing of their pre-retirement situation. We encourage others to examine the extent to which these conditioning effects may be generalizable to other health- and adjustment-related retirement outcomes. In terms of practical implications, to the extent that those more forced or “pushed” into retirement may be more susceptible to the development or exacerbation of a pattern of problematic drinking in retirement, employers, unions and policy makers may find it beneficial to more effectively encourage all soon-to-be retirement-eligible employees (regardless of when they “plan” to retire) to participate in retirement planning programs. Such programs may be used to encourage planned and voluntary exits, warn employees of the possible adverse health-related effects of unexpected or more “forced” retirement, and provide them with information as to how and where to seek help if such problems emerge. Furthermore, given the finding that even among those perceiving their retirement as being more volitional in nature (namely those who also report higher levels of pre-retirement job satisfaction), the severity of drinking problems may increase over the transition into retirement, employers and unions may want to expand the domain of their assistance benefits (e.g., EAP services) to include specialized prevention and treatment programs geared towards both retirement-eligible and retired employees.