Abstract
To paint a clearer picture of psychological adjustment to retirement, it is important to take into consideration specific characteristics of the transition as well as recognize the multidimensional nature of psychological adjustment. This study examined the effects of timing and tempo of retirement on subjective well-being. Applying multilevel models to longitudinal data drawn from retirees of the Australian HILDA Survey, we found that retiring early, relatively to retirement age norms as well as to one’s expectations, is associated with poorer well-being following retirement. Results also revealed a significant interaction of timing and tempo of retirement, such that individuals who retired earlier than they expected were more likely to react negatively to the transition and less likely to bounce back in the years thereafter compared to individuals who retired either on-time or late. Our results underscore the importance of between-person differences in adjustment to retirement and point to future mechanism-oriented research.