Health Problems as Determinants of Retirement: Are Self-Rated Measures Endogenous?

Debra Dwyer () and Olivia Mitchell

No 6503, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: We explore alternative measures of unobserved health status in order to identify effects of mental and physical capacity for work on older men's retirement. Traditional self-ratings of poor health are tested against more objectively measured instruments. Using the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), we find that health problems influence retirement plans more strongly than do economic variables. Specifically, men in poor overall health expected to retire one to two years earlier, an effect that persists after correcting for potential endogeneity of self-rated health problems. The effects of detailed health problems are also examined in depth.

JEL-codes: I19 J26 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 1998-04
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hea and nep-pbe
Note: AG LS
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (25)

Published as Journal of Health Economics, Vol. 18 (1999): 173-193.

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Journal Article: Health problems as determinants of retirement: Are self-rated measures endogenous? (1999)
Working Paper: Health Problems as Determinants of Retirement: Are Self-Rated Measures Endogenous?
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