Follow-up study for a retirement preparation program

• Grant number: 17/07164-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: July 01, 2017
• End date: June 30, 2018
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Psychology - Occupational and Organizational Psychology
• Principal Investigator: Elizabeth Joan Barham
• Grantee: Gisele dos Santos Ferreira
• Host Institution: Centro de Educação e Ciências Humanas (CECH). Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR). São Carlos , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The retirement preparation programs (RPPs) that are emerging aim, for the most part, to improve the quality of life of retirees. Good quality programs can contribute to the wellbeing of the elderly population, given that, due to the increase in life expectancy, people are spending a considerable amount of time in the post-career period. However, there is still little information about the validity and effectiveness of RPPs. Thus, the objective of this research proposal is to evaluate the importance of planning for the post-retirement period, and to answer three questions: (a) do people who carry out their plans perceive their quality of life as being higher than those who do not? (b) does having a stronger repertoire of social skills contribute to the execution and maintenance of these plans? (c) do the people who participated in the RPP intervention program report having better planning skills? To address these questions, a follow-up study will be conducted with the 23 participants of the study, "A Retirement Life-Plans Preparation Program: Needs Assessment, Process Evaluation and Effects", using a quasi-experimental research design. In the original study, there were 10 participants in the Intervention Group and 13 in the Comparison Group. All participants will respond to the semi-structured questionnaire, the Social Skills Inventory for the Elderly (IHSI-Del-Prette), and the World Health Organization Quality of Life instrument (WHOQOL-bref). Qualitative data will be analyzed using critical discourse analysis and quantitative data through descriptive and inferential analyses (using nonparametric tests), to compare both groups. (AU)