Are retired people higher in experiential wellbeing than working older adults? A time use approach

Little is known about how retirement and the time use redistribution that comes with it relate to experiential wellbeing, especially in low- and middle-income countries (LAMICs). This study aims to determine whether there are differences in experiential wellbeing between retired and working older adults; whether time use accounts for a portion of these differences; and whether these potential relationships differ across LAMICs and high-income countries. We used data from 2 multicountry studies conducted in countries at different levels of economic development: SAGE (China, Ghana, India, Mexico, and South Africa) and COURAGE in Europe (Finland, Poland, and Spain), focusing on participants aged 50+ (N = 21,000). Retirement was significantly associated with higher experiential wellbeing in both surveys, and time use accounted for more than 40% of the total effect. Retirees were higher in experiential wellbeing than working older adults, and differences in how individuals spend their day accounted for part of this relationship. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).