Pathways to labor force exit: Work transitions and work instability

The purpose of this study is to examine alternative pathways to labor force exit among older men. Based on the life course perspective, we distinguish between crisp exits from the labor force, which are characterized as being unidirectional, and blurred transition patterns, which include repeated exits, entrances, and unemployment spells. Using longitudinal data from the 1984 Survey of Income and Program Participation, we find that one-quarter of the sample of men aged 55 to 74 at first interview experienced at least one transition in labor force status over a 28-month observation period. Fewer than half of these can be characterized as crisp exits from the labor force. Our multivariate analysis suggests that blurred transition patterns are likely part of an effort to maintain economic status in later life. ALIFE COURSE approach to late-life work behaviorprompts us to consider the diversity of pathways out of the labor force (Elder, 1985). Conventionally, a single, unreversed, and unambiguous exit from the labor force is cited as the normative pathway for relinquishment of the worker role. Based on this assumption, much extant research focuses on the timing of retirement as a discrete event. Recent research illustrates clearly that these conventional understandings characterize the experience of only a seg