This new long term project will be documenting milestones of my parents retirement. It will be a documentation of their old age as well.
Abstract:
Retirement is one of the chief life transitions that symbolize entering into a new period in life. Mandatory retirement age is different from country to country, and even within the same country it may still vary based on occupation and gender. Generally, retirement age ranges between 55-75 years. As one retires, one parts from a significant activity that affects many of his\her life domains. Retirement is often accompanied by a decline in life-satisfaction, self-evaluation, and quality of life. The degree of consistency between individuals’ pre- and post-retirement activities is affected by their formal and informal planning, economic status, health, and occupational goal attainment.
Traditionally, care of the elderly was the responsibility of the younger generation. However, the social fabric is breaking, and individualism is taking place. In the past, outliving one’s savings was not a big issue in Kenya because there was a large extended family that cared for each other. However, the rapid increase in the number of nuclear families, the growing urbanization and the global nature of employment opportunities are forcing a change in this implicit social contract.
Retirement has many financial, health and emotional effects. This project is aimed at assessing how pre- retirement preparation influences retirement happiness and how having adequate coping skills in the transition to retirement could positively influence the outcome of this transition.
