The Comprehensive Impact of Retirement Planning Achievement, Active Aging, and Retirement Adjustment on Mental Health: an Empirical Analysis

DOI

10.2991/978-2-38476-400-6_30How to use a DOI?

Keywords

retirement planning achievement; active aging; retirement adjustment; mental health; retired older adults

Abstract

With the acceleration of global aging and the increasing retirement population, the mental health of older adults has gained growing attention. Based on the Life-Span Developmental Perspective, Self-Determination Theory, and Active Aging Theory, this study identifies retirement planning, active aging, and retirement adjustment as key variables influencing mental health. Existing literature shows a lack of multidimensional integration in this field. This study constructs a comprehensive model of the effects of retirement planning achievement, active aging, and retirement adjustment on mental health to explore these issues. Analysis of questionnaire data from 900 retired individuals aged 55–74 across China reveals the following findings: (1) Active aging is the strongest predictor of mental health (β = 0.506), significantly enhancing mental health through health management, social participation, and economic security; (2) Different dimensions of retirement adjustment affect mental health in varying ways. Retirement enjoyment significantly promotes mental health, while retirement loss significantly weakens mental health; (3) Retirement planning achievement affects mental health through the mediation of active aging and retirement adjustment. Mediation analysis shows that the ‘active aging path’ has the strongest positive effect on mental health, followed by the ‘retirement adjustment path’.; (4) Among demographic factors, females, individuals with higher family income, good self-rated health, and those who regularly participate in social activities (e.g., square dancing, calligraphy, and painting) exhibit better mental health and retirement adjustment. Conversely, those with lower income, lower education, and longer retirement duration demonstrate weaker mental health and adjustment capabilities; (5) Mental health scores are highest in self-awareness and interpersonal dimensions, while active aging is at a moderate level. Both retirement planning achievement and retirement adjustment are relatively low, with current social participation and social networks being insufficient, and economic factors still acting as a limiting factor in active aging. The study also highlights the importance and necessity for individuals post-retirement to focus on building social networks and actively participating in society.

Copyright

© 2025 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Jing Yuan
AU  - Boyao Zhao
AU  - Buxin Han
PY  - 2025
DA  - 2025/05/15
TI  - The Comprehensive Impact of Retirement Planning Achievement, Active Aging, and Retirement Adjustment on Mental Health: an Empirical Analysis
BT  - Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Educational Development and Social Sciences (EDSS 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 235
EP  - 249
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-400-6_30
DO  - 10.2991/978-2-38476-400-6_30
ID  - Yuan2025
ER  -