The Trouble with the Old-Time Religion

The first decades of the twentieth century saw considerable controversy over the role of more traditional Christianity at major universities. Some popular critics warned the public that universities were becoming hostile to old-time religion. Catholic universities, which were outside the mainstream, remained conservative and strengthened defenses against modern thought with neo-Thomist philosophy. The new Methodist universities had some of the most prominent controversies. Vanderbilt University was moving toward more progressive Christian views, but these were opposed by some archconservative Methodists. The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching put pressure on schools to be nonsectarian and to sever denominational ties if they were to participate in the attractive faculty retirement program. Syracuse University, a Methodist school under Chancellor James R. Day, is the most revealing case of resistance to this pressure.

An Exploration of Five Stages in Faculty Retirement Decision Making

Humans make thousands of decisions each day. Most of the decisions we make are trivial or relatively unimportant in possible consequences. However, there are a few decisions we make in life that are lifechanging; one of those is the decision to retire from the professoriate. Voluntarily deciding to leave a profession where one has spent a substantial portion of one’s working life is one of life’s major decisions. This qualitative research looks at the various influences, actions, and feelings through the process of deciding to retire. Using a five-stage cognitive decision-process model as a framework, this paper reports on the reflections of 20 recent retirees over the five stages of the decision process from when first seriously considering the decision to postretirement activities and feelings. The results show that while all faculty progressed through the five stages, the timeframe, influences, feelings, and actions were unique to each individual.

Professor Hamlet’s dilemma: to retire or not to retire?

PurposeThe purpose of this paper was to explore the experiences of tenured academic retirees and the decision-making process leading to their retirements. The inquiry addressed the research question, What were the factors that most influenced the decision to retire?Design/methodology/approachTwenty retirees from a public university were interviewed. The interview began with a multipart question about the variables that influenced the decision to retire – the positive and negative factors that “pushed against” and “pulled towards” retirement. The researchers coded the interviews, identifying common themes that contributed to responding to the research questions. Data analysis was done using the constant comparative procedure. The analysis interpreted the data to form three propositions to serve as prompts for further study.FindingsThree propositions addressed the participants' “tipping point” where retirement was more attractive than remaining employed, the relative importance of financial vs other factors and the strong role of familial/personal factors pulling toward retirement.Research limitations/implicationsThe study was conducted in a university system with contractual agreements on retirement policies and benefits and therefore might not be generalizable to dissimilar institutions. Three propositions form the basis for further research to validate. The new conception of “push” and “pull” factors can serve as a basis for future research.Practical implicationsDefined Phased Retirement Plans are recommended as a “win-win” for faculty members and the institution.Originality/valueThis paper reconceptualizes the definitions of push and pull factors in the literature on faculty retirement and enriches the understanding of the complex factors influencing the decision to retire.

Analysis Of Faculty Retirement Intention: Using A Proportional Odds Model

This paper uses data from a random national sample of faculty, age 50 and older, and explores factors affecting faculty member's retirement decisions for three expected retirement age categories. The variables such as end of mandatory retirement, age, current salary, expected others sources of income, early retirement incentives, and years of education have a significant effect on faculty retirement decisions. An understanding of these factors can help decision making for staffing purposes.