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Back to Work: Expectations and Realizations of Work after Retirement
- Journal of Human Resources
- University of Wisconsin Press
- Volume 45, Number 3, Summer 2010
- pp. 718-748
- 10.1353/jhr.2010.0011
- Article
- Additional Information
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This paper analyzes a puzzling aspect of retirement behavior known as "unretirement." Nearly 50 percent of retirees follow a nontraditional retirement path that involves partial retirement or unretirement, and at least 26 percent of retirees later unretire. I explore two possible explanations: (1) unretirement transitions result from failures in planning or financial shocks; and (2) unretirement transitions are anticipated prior to retirement, reflecting a more complex retirement process. I show that unretirement was anticipated for the vast majority of those returning to work, and is not a result of financial shocks, poor planning or low wealth accumulation.