Aging, an often-neglected aspect of diversity in universities, is an important issue, as the rate of people working who are 75 and older is growing faster than the rate for any other age group. The present sequential explanatory mixed-method study explored 129 older online faculty's attitudes and opinions on work and retirement in an online survey…

In the UK a 'crisis' has been manufactured around the so-called baby boomer generation. It has been claimed that this demographic (those born between 1946 and 1964) have benefitted from supportive public policies throughout their lives and are still continuing to access advantages but at some cost to younger generations. For example, policies that…

Receiving mentoring is associated with lasting career benefits ; however, less is known about long-term career gains for mentors. A national sample of retired academics were surveyed to examine associations between past mentoring behaviors and current evaluations of their careers. Participants (N = 277) were on average 73.6 (SD = 6.2) years old…

This study is a pioneer study examining the significance of retirement in terms of lost investments and outcomes. Research findings on the output of academic faculty and on measures of excellence in higher education indicate that upon retirement the academic institution as an organization loses not only faculty who are still capable of…

This study is a pioneer study examining the effects of personal and occupational background variables on the attitude of faculty members to an obligatory retirement age in academia. Previous studies on performance measures of academic faculty in research, teaching, academic administration, and contribution to the community, testified to…

The purpose of this paper is to find out what academics do when approaching retirement, and why; as well as to reflect on the process and consequences of reaching a retirement decision -- for themselves, the university system, and the wider community. Our study concentrates on baby boomers, as this large cohort starts to retire or become eligible…

This is an interpretive-descriptive analysis of responses to 41 open ended questionnaires returned by academics working beyond normal retirement age. The sample consisted mainly of academics from the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand. The research addressed the question of what motivates some academics to continue working beyond the…

Little is known about the impact of the end of mandatory retirement on professors over the long term. This follow-up study investigated the ten-year experience of professors who chose not to retire from a major research university after the elimination of the age 70 mandatory retirement in 1994. The initial interview study was conducted in 1998…

This study investigated older adults' peer teaching experiences at a Lifelong Learning Institute through interviews with eight teachers and observations of their classes. Thematic analysis revealed themes of peer-to-peer teaching, volunteer teaching, and explorative teaching. Discussion of the themes examines the meaning of older adults' peer…

This article examines the retirement plans and personal characteristics of 273 senior law school faculty, focusing on health status, income, job satisfaction, and preferred age of retirement. The study suggests that early retirement incentives and a "senior faculty" alternative to full retirement are positive institutional options. (DB)

Retirement plans of older participants of the Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association College Retirement Equities Fund (TIAA-CREF) were surveyed. Questionnaires were mailed to a random sample of 2,260 participants aged 59-69, and 1,438 returns served as the base for data analysis. This group was 62 percent male and 38 percent female; 48 percent…

Findings of three reports on the potential impact of age 70 mandatory retirement legislation on the arts and sciences faculties of institutions belonging to the Consortium on Financing Higher Education (COFHE) are summarized. In a report by J. Russell Southworth et al., faculty flow (departures, new appointments, appointments to tenure, etc.) is…

Fifty retired teachers were interviewed in an effort to acquire information about how their attitudes and outlooks changed throughout the course of careers in secondary schools spanning an average period of 38 years each. Of particular interest in the study was the emergence of changes in personal attitudes and changes in attitudes toward others.…

Seven questions dealing with retirement needs and expectations were included in a comprehensive questionnaire distributed to a sample of University of Southern California faculty in the fall of 1973 to obtain preliminary information for developing a more detailed study. The response to these items suggests that although most faculty now expect to…

A survey of retired teachers who have been members of the American Association of University Professors for over 50 years resulted in a high response rate and lengthy and enthusiastic replies to questions about academic freedom, instructional quality, and educational change during their careers. A significant finding was a general satisfaction…