Retirement Counseling

A Practical Guide for Action

Jane E. Myers, Harold C. Riker

• Publisher: Taylor & Francis
• Year: 2014
• Print ISBN: 9780891166283
• eBook ISBN: 9781317770565
• Topic: Psychology
• Subtopic: Mental Health in Psychology
• Index: Psychology

This portrays retirement as an exceptional opportunity for individuals to create new lifestyles for themselves. The authors encourage professionals in various fields to assist pre-retirees as well as retirees in planning for a stimulating retirement future.

Chapter One

Retirement Is a Modern Myth

INTRODUCTION

Retirement is much misunderstood. For some, it is a welcome release from work; for others, it is the end of an active, useful life. It can mean fishing, golfing, or playing, without time deadlines and time schedules; it can also mean decline in capabilities and capacities, with fewer associations and reduced involvements.

For some, retirement is an opportunity to create new ways of living, try out activities they have long wanted to try, build new approaches to daily living, find out who they are, and express feelings and ideas about themselves more completely. For them, retirement is a filling out of life in satisfying though sometimes unexpected ways. People mold their own lives as they grow and develop. The retirement years are no exception.

Two distinct and very different images of retired people exist in the United States today. One image is the hale and hearty older person 65 years of age or more, appearing to be in good physical condition, active in outdoor activities, participating in community organizations, and enjoying life. The second image is an infirm and sickly older person, 85 years of age or more, being cared for around the clock, in a wheelchair or bed, not very happy with life in general, perhaps living in a nursing home.

In short, health and activity are sometimes linked with age, though usually sickness, infirmity, inactivity, isolation, and unhappiness are more commonly visualized. To illustrate, a 70-year-old man, upon reaching his 70th birthday, said, “Well, I’ll have to give up my exercise program and my social activities and be old.” Everyone who grows older, and everyone does, has a choice: to pursue an active lifestyle or to sit back and be “old.”

In this chapter, common stereotypes about aging are described, along with their inconsistencies with reality. Some of the factors that contribute to these stereotypes include the established chronological age for retirement, reactions to retirement, and definitions of retirement. Historical changes in the meaning of retirement are reviewed. Implications of these changes for counselors are suggested and group activities are listed that are intended to help participants visualize some of the opportunities in retirement.

RETIREMENT MYTHS

Attitudes that individuals have toward their retirement grow out of the attitudes of the society of which they are a part. In general, American society has viewed retirement as the arrival of old age, a condition generally regarded as undesirable. Losses are seen as inevitable: loss of job, loss of income, and, most of all, loss of identity. Retirement is believed to be followed by physical deterioration accompanied by sickness, and sickness by helplessness. Mental health is assumed to decline, with depression as a frequent occurrence. Feelings of worth-lessness are viewed as inevitable. The myths are so powerful that many people are convinced that they can do nothing but accept them. Often, their friends and relatives reinforce the myths, in indirect but influential ways, such as alluding to negative expectations for the retirement years.

Stereotypes About Aging

Retirement myths are supported and reinforced by various stereotypes of aging. The total impact of these stereotypes can be understood better when they are reviewed together. The first is the definition of being old on the basis of chronological years. Being 65 or 70 years of age is commonly seen as being old. However, chronological years are imprecise indicators of age. Some people are young at 80 years of age, others are old at 40 years. According to Butler, there are great differences in the rates of physiological, chronological, psychological, and social aging, both within the same person, and from one person to another (1).

A second stereotype is that older persons are unproductive and therefore useless. For many years, mandatory retirement policies supported this stereotype. However, barring disease and social adversity, many older persons are productive and actively involved in a variety of enterprises. The fact is that older workers can be as effective as younger workers, except perhaps in jobs requiring prolonged physical stamina and rapid response behaviors.

A third stereotype is that older persons prefer to withdraw from social activity and to live alone or perhaps with a few peers. The emphasis is on less interaction with others and on living with memories of the past. This stereotype describes the theory of disengagement and explains the behavior of some older persons, but not all. Many are actively involved in the lives of their communities, as illustrated by their participation in federal programs such as Senior Companions, Foster Grandparents, and Retired Senior Volunteers. Other older adults are active in national, regional, and local organizations of the American Association of Retired Persons, which reports a combined membership of some 30 million persons.

A fourth stereotype is that older persons are inflexible, insistent on following set patterns of behavior, and unwilling to consider change. Older persons may prefer the familiar and fear change which involves the unknown. But so do many persons regardless of age. In fact, the capacity to change and adapt seems to be related more to lifelong behavior patterns than to age. Yet, the stereotype of inflexibility is associated with older adults (2).

“You can’t teach an old dog new tricks” is a common expression of the stereotype that older persons experience a declining ability to learn. Related to this stereotype is the popular belief that intelligence decreases with age. In actuality, healthy older persons can continue to increase their ability to organize their thinking and successfully complete a college degree program. Recent research has led to a distinction between fluid and crystallized intelligence. Fluid intelligence, the ability to learn new things, decreases slightly with age. Crystallized intelligence, or stored funds of knowledge, continues to increase, while the overall pattern is one of no change or only slight change in intelligence with age. The decrease in fluid intelligence actually reflects a decrease in response speed. Some research suggests that older persons can be helped to improve their response speed on intelligence tests (3); hence, their scores may be expected to improve. Yet, the popular opinion is that older persons’ ability to learn continues to decline.

Another stereotype is that older persons are senile, meaning that they are forgetful, confused, or unable to keep focused on one topic for any period of time. Undiagnosed and largely reversible problems, such as anxiety, grief, depression, overuse of drugs, or malnutrition, may produce the behaviors described as senile. However, permanent brain damage, correctly identified as senility, is irreversible. The point is that much of the behavior called senility can be successfully treated.

Yet another commonly held stereotype is that older persons have a declining capacity for sexual activity. This stereotype has two components. The first is the frequently held belief that sexual relationships for older persons are improper. The second is the impression that older persons lose with age their physiological capacities for intercourse. The evidence is that healthy older persons who have maintained reasonable continuity in their sex lives continue to enjoy sexual relationships throughout most of the life span (4).

Another stereotype is that serenity is the reward of those who grow older. The impression conveyed by this stereotype is that the problems of active life are over, that older persons accept whatever befalls them. In actuality, older persons often face as many stressful conditions as other age groups, or even more. Although growing older is unlikely to eliminate stress, the fact of survival over a long period of time does seem to equip older persons to deal adequately with various stresses when they arise.

The total impact of these and other false beliefs about aging cannot be calculated. However, their effect on persons planning to retire can be described as negative and as painting the picture of a dismal, decaying future which hardly seems worth the effort. The social prejudice thus confronting older Americans can discourage efforts toward continued growth and continued interest in developing new capabilities. Yet, when older persons understand the stereotypes about aging as expressions of prejudice they can look ahead with anticipation to the opportunities of their future. They will also find it helpful to gain more factual information about the aging process and about the life changes to which they should react.

There are several issues involving retirement which contribute to some of the stereotypes already mentioned. These include (a) the age for retirement, (b) the definition of retirement, and (c) reactions to retirement. These issues are discussed below, followed by a historical review of changes in the meaning of retirement.

The Time for Retirement

First, when is retirement? Age 65 has been the commonly accepted age for retirement. In 1932, Social Security legislation specified 65 as the age at which citizens would be eligible for retirement benefits.

However, the trend is toward earlier retirement. The age at which more people retire at present is 62, and the average is dropping. For example, active duty military personnel can retire after 20 years of service, as early as ages 38–40. Many blue-collar workers now retire in their middle and late 50s. Organizations such as labor unions, the federal Civil Service, and some corporations have even encouraged earlier retirement.

In the fall of 1986, federal legislation abolished the retirement age of 70. Some states have canceled any age limitations on employment. In terms of human rights, legislation has been in the direction of enabling all citizens to work as long as they have the skill and will to work.

In spite of opportunities to retire at older ages, more people are retiring at younger ages. The point is that the age of retirement varies widely and may vary even more in the future. Retirees no longer represent a particular age group, if they ever did; their ages range upward from 40.

Definition of Retirement

Some definitions of retirement are detailed and long, because definers try to be inclusive. However, all definitions seem to include two major features: (a) Retired persons are employed less than full time, and (b) their income is derived, in part at least, from retirement pensions.

Retirement is part of an occupational role. It is an event, a process, or a social role (5). In terms of an event and an occupational process, retirement in U.S. society is likely to emphasize finality. As a social role, however, it can have an ongoing quality, bringing new opportunities and new responsibilities. This role usually involves new kinds of relationships with family, former job associates, neighbors, and friends. It also is likely to bring with it new friends and new associates.

Since decision making in the past may have been handled by one’s job supervisor, new freedom of action in retirement will call for decisions on one’s own and more self-reliance. Since financial resources can be expected to drop for most persons, revisions in style of living may be in order. Since self-identity is often derived from one’s job, the retiree may wonder, “Who am I? What do I want to be now and in the future?” Out of the answers to these questions a revised identity can develop.

Retirement may represent a new beginning in the retiree’s life, comparable in some ways to the younger person’s leaving home for a first job. There are differences. The older person has the advantages of...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Series in Death Education, Aging, and Health Care
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• Preface
• 1 Retirement Is a Modern Myth
• 2 Living Is a Continuing Process
• 3 Role of the Counselor
• 4 Life Planning
• 5 Enjoying Health
• 6 Relating to Others
• 7 Making Use of Time
• 8 Deciding on a Place to Live
• 9 Financing a New Lifestyle
• 10 Retirement Preparation Programs
• 11 A New Beginning
• Index