Encore Adulthood

Boomers on the Edge of Risk, Renewal, and Purpose

Phyllis Moen

Presents the personal and societal implications of early retirement of Boomers
Proposes ways in which Boomers can engage in work that is both meaningful and well-suited to a slower-paced lifestyle
Features in-depth empirical research on the new and understudied life stage of encore adulthood

Encore Adulthood

Boomers on the Edge of Risk, Renewal, and Purpose

Phyllis Moen

Description

The Baby Boomer generation is facing a time of heightened uncertainty. Blessed with unprecedented levels of education, health, and life expectancy, many hope to contribute to society after their retirement. Yet they must also navigate ambiguous career exits and retirement paths, as established scripts for schooling, parenting, and careers continue to unravel.

In Encore Adulthood, Phyllis Moen presents the realities of the "encore" life stage - the years between traditional careers and childraising and old age. Drawing on large-scale data sets and interviews with Boomers, HR personnel, and policymakers, this book illuminates the challenges that Boomers encounter as they transition from traditional careers into retirement. Beyond data analysis, Moen discusses the personal impact for Boomers' wellbeing, happiness, and health when they are unable to engage in meaningful work during their encore years, as well as the potential economic loss that would occur when a large, qualified group of people prematurely exit the workforce.

Moen concludes with proposals for a range of encore jobs that could galvanize Boomers to take on desirable and sought-after second acts, emphasizing meaningful work over high-paying jobs and flexibility over long hours. An important analysis of an understudied and new life stage, Encore Adulthood makes an important contribution to the existing scholarship on careers, work, and retirement.

Encore Adulthood

Boomers on the Edge of Risk, Renewal, and Purpose

Phyllis Moen

Introduction
Chapter 1: An Encore to Adulthood
Agenda #1: Recognizing Inertia
Chapter 2: Outdated Career and Life Course Templates
Chapter 3: Context: Inertia, Upheavals, Inequality
Agenda #2: Time Shifting Improvisations
Chapter 4: Improvising Plans for the Future
Chapter 5: Improvising Work, Civic Engagement, Retirement
Chapter 6: Improvising Health, Well-Being, Purpose
Agenda #3: Innovations
Chapter 7: Institutional Work, Pockets of Change
Chapter 8: Transforming Institutions and Lives

Encore Adulthood

Boomers on the Edge of Risk, Renewal, and Purpose

Phyllis Moen

Author Information

Phyllis Moen is Professor of Sociology at the University of Minnesota where she holds a McKnight Presidential Endowed Chair.

Encore Adulthood

Boomers on the Edge of Risk, Renewal, and Purpose

Phyllis Moen

Reviews and Awards

"In Encore Adulthood, Phyllis Moen-our preeminent scholar of the emerging life course-illuminates the bonus decades opening up between middle years and anything resembling old age. Beautifully written and filled with moving stories, Moen's book offers insights for individuals navigating this new, exciting, but often poorly understood chapter, and for societies determined to make the most of the longevity revolution. This is a landmark book, one destined to reshape our thinking about the new map of life." -Marc Freedman, author of The Big Shift and CEO of Encore.org

"Phyllis Moen opens our eyes to the emergence of this entirely new life stage, illuminating both the challenges it poses and the opportunities it offers as full-time paid work and family-building come to an end. Social scientists, policy makers, and individuals of all ages should pay close attention and follow the lead of this pioneering work." - Kathleen Gerson, author of The Unfinished Revolution

"Conventional adulthood unravels and encore adulthood emerges. Moen, with great insight, describes in this masterful book the social construction of the past and the possibilities of an enriched and fully engaged future for older men and women." -Lisa Berkman, Thomas D. Cabot Professor of Public Policy and Epidemiology, Harvard University