Abstract:

Retirement planning refers to one’s long-term effort in preparation for his/her post-retirement life. It has garnered increasing attention in countries that have entered into aging societies. Retirement planning will not only benefit retirees’ well-being, but will also help reduce the pressure confronted by the Social Security system. Based on the literature of retirement planning, this review provides a summary of studies in six major planning domains (i.e., financial, health and well-being-related, social activities/leisure-related, work-related, psychological, and housing), four main theoretical framework (i.e., role theory, planning- process theory, resource theory, and ecological systems theory), and representative measurement. Furthermore, this review discussed demographic factors, environment factors, and psychological factors as the antecedents of retirement planning and its consequences on bridge employment and retirement adjustment. According to the theoretical development and the current realities in China, it is recommended that future research should develop localized measurement tools, choose the appropriate theoretical framework, and systematically study retirement planning in various domains. Future research should also innovatively examine other antecedents of retirement planning. In addition, researchers could conduct intervention studies on retirement planning that correspond to China’s national realities.

Key words: aging, retirement, retirement planning, bridge employment, retirement adjustment