Career adaptation and retirement intentions

This study examines the psychological antecedents of retirement decisions through a time-lagged, three-wave quantitative investigation. The research explores how career adaptivity, specifically proactive personality (T1) and Occupational Future Time Perspective (OFTP, T2), along with career adaptability (T2), influence late-career decisions (T3), such as career bridge employment, same organization bridge employment, and full retirement. Data were collected from 235 employees of a French insurance company. The findings reveal that career adaptivity factors positively impact career bridge employment and negatively influence full retirement intentions, both directly and sequentially. Proactive personality enhances OFTP, which in turn increases the likelihood of same-organization bridge employment. Furthermore, proactive personality influences career bridge employment via OFTP and career adaptability. The study also confirms the distinct roles of career adaptivity and adaptability in shaping bridge employment intentions. Overall, the research empirically validates career construction theory by demonstrating how these variables affect retirement-related career decisions.