After a long decline, the Labor Force Participation Rate (LFPR) of older men in the United States leveled off in the 1980s, and began to increase in the late 1990s. We examine how changes in Social Security rules affected these trends. We attribute only a small portion of the decline from the 1960s-80s to the increasing generosity of Social…

Current Population Survey data were used to examine men's later labor force participation for the 1895-1934 birth cohorts. A substantial portion of differences may be attributed to changing levels of social security benefits, the proportion of workers receiving disability benefits, and the unemployment rate. (SK)

Work attachment of men aged 58-63 fell dramatically from 1969-89, with a sharp reduction at age 62 that is probably due to Social Security's early retirement provision. Nonpension income and the interaction between private pensions, personal assets, and Social Security may also play a large role. (SK)

Purpose: This article investigates how older Americans leave their career jobs and estimates the extent of intermediate labor force activity (bridge jobs) between full-time work on a career job and complete labor-force withdrawal. Design and Methods: Using data from the Health and Retirement Study, we explored the work histories and retirement…

A matched sample of Social Security and Current Population Survey records is used to determine life-cycle earnings patterns of White males. Estimated effects of schooling and experience compare well with other studies, but interaction effects with cohort do not. Military experience plays a powerful role in earnings differences across cohorts.…

The passage of the Contract with America Advancement Act terminated the Social Security Administrations Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security Income benefits for persons diagnosed with drug or alcohol addiction (also known as DA&A recipients), effective January 1, 1997. From an evaluation standpoint, the law created the opportunity…

Recent trends toward earlier retirement have exacerbated the financial problems facing the Social Security system and many other public and private pension plans. The massive commitment of public and private funds to Social Security and pension funds is partly responsible for the trend to early retirement. This, in fact, was one of the early goals…