Time and Activities in Retirement: On Being or Becoming Ulyssean Chapter 8 – Part 1 HPR 452

Context of Aging and Leisure Importance of leisure in later life??? Societies and individuals must deal with the questions Degree of status? Is relevant leisure a viable substitute for paid employment – Societal trends affect this and not just individual attitudes  Time famine, multi-tasking, busier is better vs. desired pace of retirement

 Some eagerly embrace slowing down, some have to slowly decompress and some continue with the “work-like attitude”  Economic Trends – 401K – annuities – pensions – Robust vs. Downturn – continue working? Layoffs w/o funds for retirement – changes in SS and Medicare  More older individuals working and assuming other roles in later life  Care giving to older parents

 What is to be encouraged?  What is deemed necessary?  Balance between obligatory and discretionary activities affects leisure  Will undergo scrutiny and analysis in coming decades  Overall, work hours increasing and leisure hours decreasing

Retirement Age and Stress Addition of amount of leisure in day, week Age of retirement Work related stress decreases Health concern increases stress Individuals are retiring earlier - 65 to 62 and living longer after retirement So an extended period of leisure life after retirement Retirees (as a group) report ½ the stress of working adults – individual factors excluded Stress highest in 30s and 40s

Use of Time in Later Life Retiring earlier, living longer, less stress as a rule Pension fraud, corporate shifts, outliving retirement $$ = returning to work in later years, health crisis of individual or their spouse Older men have increased leisure time - doing household chores, passive rec or fitness Women spend more time than men w/ household chores, and less on sports and fitness Socially and communicating, TV and reading = between the sexes Bottom line – tv, communicating, reading, hobbies Slower pace reduces stress

Leisure Activities In Later Life Favorites in order most to least up to 65: – Reading (30%) – TV (21%) – Time with family (13%) – Gardening – growing significantly in popularity – Others – fishing, team sports, going to movies, sewing, walking, swimming reading newspaper, TV, phone, hobbies, reading books, exercise, gardening, visiting friends

Computer and Internet Use Growing among older adults y/o higher than 65+ Communicating with friends and loved ones Information gatherers, Travel planning, not as comfortable shopping online Helps them feel younger and stay more connected w/ children and grandchildren Computer use shown to decrease loneliness and lower depression but not statistically sig. in NH resident study

Leisure During the Older Years: A Longitudinal Perspective How much and what types of change occur as one moves into later life? Time spent differently (discontinuity) or remain relatively stable (continuity) How do other areas of their life affect leisure?

Summaries of Studies 1. Shifts in preferences – What, how, how often, and how long 2. Longitudinal study – categories of activities with 5 classified as discretionary leisure – (socializing, entertainment, public service, hobbies/leisure, sports 2. General stability over time (differences within less than differences between individuals)

3. Changes that occurred were gradual 2. Passive activity showed stronger relationships with well-being (crafts and visiting friends) Watching TV was negatively correlated to well-being in older age older adults over 16 years – 6 activity categories: informal social, home activity, volunteer and organizational, spectator/ travel, crafts/hobbies, sports participation. – Females decreased in sports and volunteer. Men in all.

– Health status was a significant contributor to decrease Overall, aging individuals are “continuers” when it comes to activities in later life Exercise and Physical Activity To delay or minimize physiological/biological aging To make you feel good on daily basis

Societal context – Media barrage Healthy People 2010 – ages and 75+ – Women less active than men at all ages – African Americans and Hispanics get less exercise than whites – General need for activity in those with disabilities and 2/3 of those over 75 – 1/3 of those over 60 were deemed to be at a healthy weight

Participation in regular exercise program is effective intervention/modality to reduce/prevent functional decline Assists in trainability for endurance and strength training Benefits of regular exercise and phys activity contributes to more healthy, independent lifestyle, improves functional capacity and increases quality of life for fastest growing segment of population

Exercise as a Category of Leisure Overall, it declines and/or becomes less exerting – walking vs. running, golf, gardening, bowling, swimming, light calisthenics, etc. Men more active than women More aging individuals turn to passive activities Activity slows as age progresses

Perceived participation rates (not actual) correlated with reduced stress in another study Actual participation in physical activity correlated with assessed health Strength and endurance training resulted in fewer falls (improvement in gait and balance) and visits to health clinics

Mood improved and anxiety decreased in another study = positive psychological status A review of 6 studies concluded – Lowered depression – Reduced stress – Enhanced mood – Higher overall psychological well-being

Motivators Health reasons, social opportunities and coping were top reasons Also, providing structure to daily life