Personalia
Hanna van Solinge, born in Moordrecht, the Netherlands, 1960. Ph.D. from Utrecht University. Senior Researcher at Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute (NIDI-KNAW), The Hague, The Netherlands.
Theme Group Fellow (1 February – 30 June 2016)
Family Influences on Late Career Transitions
Research Question
The central premise in this project is that careers are not solo passages, but are part of linked lives. It is therefore difficult to understand individuals’ late career employment decisions without also understanding the family context in which these decisions are made. In this project, I will examine family influences on late career transitions, retirement in particular.
Project Description
More and more couples approach retirement as dual earners, and consequently have to attune their retirement. Still, little is known about how couples actually navigate their retirement, nor about how family circumstances affect the retirement transition. This study examines the role of the family in late career decision-making. I will investigate to what extent expectations of preferences for retirement are shared between spouses. I will particularly pay attention to (in)congruence in the couple’s retirement preferences and the role of (unexpected) family circumstances (e.g. illness). Given the stronger relational orientation of women, I expect that this process may be heavily gendered. Just as career decisions are often made in relation to the needs of others, retirement decisions may be made on that basis as well.
Selected Publications
1) Wang, M., K. Henkens & H. van Solinge (2011), Retirement adjustment: A review of theoretical and empirical advancements. American Psychologist 66 (3): 204-213.
2) Solinge, H. van & K. Henkens (2008), Adjustment to and satisfaction with retirement: two of a kind? Psychology and Aging 23 (2): 422-434
3) Solinge, H. van, K. Henkens (2005), Couples’ adjustment to retirement: a multi-actor panel study. Journal of gerontology: social sciences 60B (1): S 11-S 20