Study title

Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.

The 1994 Retirement Survey is the second wave of a panel survey designed to examine issues surrounding the transition to retirement. The panel nature of the Retirement Survey data provides a unique insight into the behaviour of this group of people at and around retirement age. The issues examined include those associated with retirement behaviour, health, incomes, pensions, assets and housing.
The first wave of the survey was carried out in 1988-1989 (the data are held at the Archive under SN:2946). Two-thirds of the respondents from the first wave were re-interviewed in 1994.
Main Topics:

The dataset contains detailed information on incomes, assets, retirement, pension entitlements, housing, disability, caring responsibility and labour market participation. Attitudinal information was collected - in particular on views about retirement. Retrospective data were collected for each individual about lifetime, family, employment and pension histories in the first wave in 1988-1989 (SN:2946) and updated in this second wave.

Standard Measures
The scales developed by OPCS (now ONS) for the 1985 OPCS Disability Survey were used to measure the nature and severity of any disability among respondents in this wave. These scales are described in Martin, J., Meltzer, H. and Elliot, D. <i>The prevalence of disability among adults</i> (London: HMSO, 1988).