Short-term changes in depressive symptoms after the transition from paid employment to retirement: a fixed-effects analysis among 8560 workers from 29 countries

Objectives Paid employment is an important social determinant of health, and transition to retirement may affect health. This study investigated the association between transitioning from paid employment to retirement and changes in depressive symptoms within individuals. Methods Data were obtained from 8560 individuals from 29 countries who transitioned from paid employment to retirement during follow-up in the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE). Depressive symptoms were self-reported using the EURO-D scale (score: 0–12). Linear fixed-effects regression models were used to estimate the association between retiring and within-individual changes in depressive symptoms, including stratified analysis by sociodemographic and psychosocial work characteristics (effort–reward imbalance, job control and job demand). Results Before retirement, workers reported a EURO-D score of 1.81 (SD=1.83). Retirement was associated with a reduction in depressive symptoms (β=−0.08 (95% CI−0.11 to −0.05)), with greater decline among individuals who experienced effort–reward imbalance (β=−0.15), high job demand (β=−0.13) and low job control (β=−0.13). Contrarily, workers who retired at age 70 or older experienced an increase in depressive symptoms (β=0.27). Geographically, the steepest decline in depressive symptoms was observed in Southern Europe (β=−0.14). The association by sociodemographic groups showed inconsistent patterns across geographic regions. Conclusions The effect of retirement on mental health was small. While retirement decreased depressive symptoms overall, especially among those with unfavourable work characteristics, these individuals continued to report higher depressive symptoms postretirement. Improving psychosocial work conditions may reduce mental health disparities both during employment and into retirement.