Deck 9: Retirement and Work

Question 1

The federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) says that a person age 65 or over may face mandatory retirement if they hold an executive position for at least ________ years prior to the retirement date.

A) 2
B) 5
C) 8
D) 10

Answer 1

A

Question 2

The "retirement principle" can be defined as

A) the option for older to people to retire anytime after age 65.
B) a principle that allows people only with reduced physical abilities the opportunity to retire at 65.
C) a principle that states people should leave work at a fixed age regardless of physical or mental ability.
D) a seniority system that gave older workers the most job security by creating a first hired, last fired system.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

The retirement principle opened the door to retirement for many workers. However, few workers walked through because ________ kept them at work.

A) the retirement wage
B) unions
C) the seniority system
D) the absence of private pensions

Answer 3

D

Question 4

In the United States, the retirement wage

A) took the form of the Social Security program in 1935.
B) was inadequate until the 1960s.
C) makes it impossible for anyone to retire.
D) supplemented the largest part of a person's income.

Question 5

Rising entitlements made available by the state

A) allowed older workers to keep working.
B) allowed older workers to withdraw from the labor market before they wore out.
C) increased labor force participation for older men before the mid-1980s.
D) ended mandatory retirement.

Question 6

The presence of the "retirement principle" and the "retirement wage" has made retirement

A) a necessary evil for most older people to face.
B) a shocking experience for most seniors.
C) a conflict issue between employers and unions.
D) almost universal.

Question 7

Newport (2015b) found drops in labor force participation at ages 62 and 65, reflecting the ages when ________ encourage older workers to retire.

A) Social Security and Medicare
B) private pensions
C) Social Security and private pensions
D) employers

Question 8

An AARP study conducted in 2014 found that ___% of workers aged 60--74 planned to stay in the labor force after retirement.

A) 93
B) 49
C) 33
D) 20

Question 9

Which of the following best describes the conditions faced by workers following the Great Recession?

A) Older workers experienced expanded job opportunities, while younger workers found fewer opportunities.
B) Older workers, especially those near retirement age, were able to preserve most of their wealth through shrewd investment.
C) Older workers felt no disruption, while middle-aged workers were left with depleted retirement savings.
D) Workers near retirement were often laid off and unable to find new work, had to use their retirement savings as a buffer while they sought new work, or were forced to retire early.

Question 10

The need for income, health insurance, and social contact

A) fuel the trend toward early retirement.
B) are the reasons why most workers have planned to work in retirement.
C) causes stress in older people.
D) is not a problem for older workers.

Question 11

A study of women and retirement shows that women have a ________ career path compared to men.

A) less varied
B) more varied
C) less fulfilling
D) more fulfilling

Question 12

Szinovacz (2006) believes that the study of women and retirement must take into account

A) her finances.
B) her educational level.
C) a woman's life cycle.
D) her material status.

Question 13

Poor pensions, low pay, and a broken work record all lead to ________ for women.

A) low income in retirement.
B) high income in retirement.
C) early retirement.
D) later retirement.

Question 14

Lower education levels, lower income levels, and racial discrimination has meant ________ for many minority workers, keeping them from building up large public or private pension benefits.

A) greater incidences of depression
B) a broken work career
C) social isolation
D) "off the books" work

Question 15

The 2007 Minority Retirement Confidence Survey results suggest that many minority workers

A) will easily be able to retire at age 65.
B) have more savings and report more adequate preparation for retirement compared to all workers.
C) do not expect health benefits and long-term care benefits in retirement.
D) will need to work past their expected retirement age.

Question 16

Gibson's (1987) review of the literature on retirement found that studies assume that people retire at age 65, that a clear line exists between work and nonwork, and that people draw income primarily from retirement sources. She says that older members of minority groups like African Americans and Hispanics often

A) fall into some, but not all of these categories.
B) don't report their income sources and work histories making generalizations difficult.
C) perfectly fit these categories, indicating that minorities follow a similar retirement strategy as other retirees.
D) do not fit into these criteria, indicating gerontologists must rethink the meaning of retirement in light of minority experiences.

Question 17

Because of low pensions and disability, African Americans, women, and people with low socioeconomic status had trouble reentering the workforce after retirement. These findings suggest that these minorities

A) must find creative ways of generating supplementary income.
B) have fewer retirement options than whites.
C) must demand greater compensation from the government to balance out this inequity.
D) constitute a new category of elderly called the "willing to work."

Question 18

The 2007 Minority Retirement Confidence Survey showed that, compared to all workers, __% of Hispanic workers showed less confidence that they will have enough money to take care of basic expenses in retirement.

A) 82
B) 65
C) 45
D) 33

Question 19

Minority members' work experiences lead to retirement options and decisions that differ from the white population. Which factor does NOT contribute to these differences?

A) discrimination
B) high education levels
C) language barriers
D) broken work careers

Question 20

Minority groups pose unique problems to the study of retirement. Often, gerontologists know almost nothing about retirement among minorities like Hispanic Americans. Part of the problem can be explained by

A) an unwillingness of smaller minority groups to participate in academic studies.
B) the fact that many minorities do not believe in the idea of retirement and do not define themselves as retired.
C) the fact that gerontologists haven't agreed on a standard method of study focused on minorities.
D) the lives of migrant workers who hold seasonal jobs and speak little or no English.

Question 21

Which of the following is NOT a typical pattern of labor force withdrawal for those who choose alternatives to retirement?

A) A worker reduces the number of hours that they work for their current employer.
B) A worker will be forced to retire, and suffer from boredom without recourse.
C) A worker will retire, then unretire to a new job one or two years later.
D) A worker engages in partial retirement, where they often begin a bridge job.

Question 22

Which of the following is an institutional force leading to retirement?

A) finances
B) health
C) rapid changes in the economy
D) social pressures

Question 23

Retirees now have many alternatives to retirement. Moen and Spencer (2006) refer to these options as

A) second acts.
B) leisure activities.
C) personal discovery.
D) outsourcing.

Question 24

U.S. workers now retire at earlier ages than ever before. Which best explains why?

A) Early retirement is usually forced on older Americans.
B) Unions use incentives to get older workers to retire.
C) People who wanted to retire felt tired of work and had good pensions and retirement benefits.
D) Societal expectations have changed making early retirement acceptable.

Question 25

Taylor and Doverspike (2003) found that the reasons for early retirement differed by ethnicity. They found that

A) early-retired whites retired because of economic changes in the white-collar workforce, while minority groups retire early due to choice.
B) whites take retirement early because of their good pension programs, while minority groups tended to retire early due to health and physical impairment.
C) early-retired whites retired because of health and physical impairment, while minority groups retired early because of good Social Security benefits.
D) whites take early retirement because of their good private pension programs, while minority groups retire early because of good public pension programs.

Question 26

A growing older population, retired in late-middle age, may put a strain on Social Security and other pension plans. Which of the following is NOT one of Social Security's rules to remove incentives for early retirement?

A) Social Security will reduce benefits at age 62 from 80% to 70%.
B) Workers will get increased Social Security benefits for putting off retirement.
C) Social Security will raise the age for full benefits from age 62 to age 67 by the year 2027.
D) Seniors who retire early will find a 5% tax on their Social Security income until age 65.

Question 27

Which type of pension plan acts like a savings account, where the longer the people work, the more money they add to their plan?

A) defined benefit pension plan
B) defined contribution pension plan
C) defined pension income plan
D) defined growth and profit plan

Question 28

Retirees now have many options in retirement. These options range from early retirement to

A) partial retirement.
B) leisure activities.
C) second careers.
D) partial retirement to second careers.

Question 29

Some researchers define ________ as work in the two years after a retiree begins to get Social Security benefits.

A) phased retirement
B) pre-retirement
C) partial retirement
D) sporadic retirement

Question 30

According to Novelli and Workman (2006), workers who retire in phases are more likely to

A) have a positive view of work and stay in the workforce longer.
B) have a negative view of work.
C) leave the workplace sooner.
D) rarely cycle back into the workforce.

Question 31

For some, the sudden transition to retirement in the past has begun to change into a(n) ________ pattern of retirement.

A) gradual
B) sporadic
C) abrupt
D) phased

Question 32

For many retired people, a second career means a

A) forced return to the workforce due to financial pressure.
B) voluntary return to work similar to the person's mid-life career.
C) job such as child day care worker, a salmon fisher, or a dog-groomer.
D) job where the people set their own goals, use their own approach to solving problems, and express their own identity.

Question 33

Studies suggest that ________ in later life can lead to good health, longer life, and successful aging.

A) retirement
B) inactivity
C) meaningful work
D) withdrawal

Question 34

Corbett (2007) created the concept of the ________, that consists of a person's commitments to specific activities and relationships.

A) busy ethic
B) social portfolio
C) financial portfolio
D) life portfolio

Question 35

In addition to a balanced financial portfolio, Cohen (2005) believes that people should also ________ in retirement.

A) live in senior housing
B) create a balanced social portfolio
C) receive private pension income
D) return to work

Question 36

________ is a financial program that focuses on financial planning for retirement.

A) Revoking retirements
B) Political economy
C) PRE
D) AARP

Question 37

Research shows that ________ is the single most important factor in assembling a comfortable retirement life free from financial worries.

A) Social Security
B) health
C) insurance
D) planning

Question 38

Which of the following is not a desirable characteristic of a good preretirement program?

A) information on vacation destinations
B) involvement of the spouse of the retiree
C) financial planning
D) information on a variety of health and lifestyle topics

Question 39

One critique of preretirement education programs is that they

A) ignore the specific needs and concerns of women and minorities.
B) do not provide an outlet to vent concerns over their lower income and greater caregiving burden.
C) give insufficient information to navigate through the maze of bureaucratic forms.
D) ignore the community aspect of an individual's life.

Question 40

The ________ looks at the effects of social structures on a person's retirement options.

A) conflict perspective
B) structural functional perspective
C) social structural perspective
D) political economy perspective

Question 41

Some social scientists divide the economy into the goods producing and the service sectors. Workers in the goods producing sector tend to ________, while workers in the service sector tend to ________.

A) follow traditional retirement patterns; show less traditional retirement patterns
B) show less traditional retirement patterns; follow traditional retirement patterns
C) defer retirement by choice; work longer because they need the income
D) work longer because they need the income; defer retirement by choice

Question 42

Jobs after a life career but before full retirement are called

A) transitional jobs.
B) gainful employment.
C) bridge jobs.
D) secondary employment.

Question 43

Older workers who lose their jobs due to economic slowdowns, plant closings, or an end to their positions are known as ________ workers.

A) disgruntled
B) displaced
C) disgraced
D) dislodged

Question 44

Because of the sharp downturn in the economy, older workers who want to stay at work often find

A) themselves forced into retirement.
B) it easy to move to jobs in other areas.
C) higher paying jobs in the service industry.
D) an increase in job status and income.

Question 45

In the future, retirement will depend on

A) finding a new optimal age at which a person should be encouraged to leave work.
B) the viability of Social Security into the 21st century.
C) how successful retirement counseling helps people plan ahead.
D) individual choice, the economy, marital status, personal finances, and health.