American Economic Journal:
Applied Economics
ISSN 1945-7782 (Print) | ISSN 1945-7790 (Online)
When They're Sixty-Four: Peer Effects and the Timing of Retirement
American Economic Journal: Applied Economics
vol. 4,
no. 3, July 2012
(pp. 90–115)
Abstract
This paper examines the effect of peers on an individual's likelihood of retirement using an administrative dataset of all retirement-eligible Los Angeles teachers for the years 1998-2001. We use two large unexpected pension reforms that differentially impacted financial incentives within and across schools to construct an instrument for others' retirement decisions. Controlling for individual and school characteristics, we find that the retirement of an additional teacher in the previous year at the same school increases a teacher's own likelihood of retirement by 1.5-2 percentage points. We then explore some possible mechanisms through which this effect operates. (JEL H75, I21, J14, J26, J45)Citation
Brown, Kristine M., and Ron A. Laschever. 2012. "When They're Sixty-Four: Peer Effects and the Timing of Retirement." American Economic Journal: Applied Economics 4 (3): 90–115. DOI: 10.1257/app.4.3.90Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- H75 State and Local Government: Health; Education; Welfare; Public Pensions
- I21 Analysis of Education
- J14 Economics of the Elderly; Economics of the Handicapped; Non-labor Market Discrimination
- J26 Retirement; Retirement Policies
- J45 Public Sector Labor Markets