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Post-retirement employment behavior and older people’s expenditure: New evidence from urban China

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 October 2024

Di Lu Open the ORCID record for Di Lu [Opens in a new window] ,
Xing Feng  and
Shujing Ji
Di Lu*
Affiliation:
Northeast Asian Research Center, Jilin University, Changchun, China Northeast Asian Studies Collage, Jilin University, Changchun, China
Xing Feng
Affiliation:
School of Economics, Faculty of Economics, Liaoning University, Shenyang, China
Shujing Ji
Affiliation:
School of Statistics, Jilin University of Finance and Economics, Changchun, China
*
Corresponding author: Di Lu; Email: [email protected]
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Abstract

Using data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study, this research investigates how post-retirement employment influences older people’s expenditure in urban China. By broadening the understanding of post-retirement employment behaviour from a consumer welfare perspective, this study expands the literature on retirement consumption and provides theoretical explanations, empirical insights and policy recommendations. The findings reveal that post-retirement employment behaviour reduces urban retirees’ household expenditure and has a more significant effect on men than on women, but this effect diminishes as consumption levels rise. Increasing income, promoting social participation and improving subjective health outcomes are all potential channels through which post-retirement employment can affect consumption. Further analysis shows two main reasons why post-retirement employment reduces older people’s expenditure: first, the increase in subjective health levels resulting from post-retirement employment reduces healthcare expenditure; second, post-retirement employment does not promote social participation and self-rated health for all consumption levels and all genders of retirees – it also decreases expenditure. Preliminary evidence suggests that internet use positively moderates the negative impact of post-retirement employment on older people’s expenditure. These findings provide policy implications for retirement policies and the promotion of the silver economy.

Keywords

consumptioninternet usepost-retirement employmentself-rated healthsocial participation
Type
Article
Information
Ageing & Society , First View , pp. 1 - 35
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press.

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