Work, aging and retirement in Europe: Introduction to the special issue

This introduction to the special issue on work, aging, and retirement in Europe consists of 3 parts. First we describe important differences in demographic trends relevant for older workers and retirees, as well as the high variance of the European socioeconomic context, in different countries in Europe. The second section briefly introduces the articles included in this special issue. They consider different aspects of the aging experience in the workplace during late career and the forthcoming transition to retirement. In doing so, the articles touch on 3 important research areas: age differences in the workplace, planning late career and retirement, and work after retirement in bridge employment. The articles are written by researchers adopting different theoretical perspectives, but mainly grounded in the field of work and organizational psychology. The final section calls for a broader research perspective in the field and covers several important methodological issues. We argue for multidisciplinary and multilevel research to advance science and practice alike in this field.