This study examines retirement decisions in Japan, using the option value (OV) model proposed by Stock and Wise (1990) and examined by subsequent studies. This model assumes that individuals maximize a weighted average of utility from their labor income until retirement as well as that from...

This paper explores the public pension claiming behavior of the Japanese. First, we perform financial simulations and estimate the expected utility, depicting the typical patterns of pension benefits in a lifecycle model. We show that the optimal retirement age depends on the beneficiaries'...

Using panel data from two surveys in Japan and Europe, we examine the comparability of the self-rated health (SRH) of the middle-aged and elderly across Japan and the European countries and the survey periods. We find that a person's own health is evaluated on different standards (thresholds)...

In this paper, we present an OLG simulation model with transmission of individual ability and endogenous fertility in order to capture the effects that strengthening income redistribution, expansion of child benefit, and expansion of educational support have on economic disparity and economic...

The purpose of this study is to investigate how family and social relations affect the life satisfaction levels of elderly men and women in Japan. We used micro-data from 3,063 Japanese elderly adults (1,565 men and 1,498 women) collected from a sample in the first-wave of the Japanese Study of...

This article examines how initial job status following graduation affects the midlife outcomes and mental health of Japanese workers, using micro data from a nationwide online survey of 3,117 men and 2,818 women aged 30-60. The focus was the impact of initial job status on socioeconomic/marital...

While the average retirement age is higher in Japan, the retirement process has not been in-depth explored from multiple factors including economic, health and family statuses. We examine the transition of work status and working hours for Japanese males and females using JSTAR (Japanese Study...

This study explores stability of preference against aging and health shocks. Contrary to a vast amount of literature assuming that risk attitude is unchanged over time, we utilize JSTAR (Japanese Study of Aging and Retirement), which provides longitudinal data on the middle aged and elderly...

This study proposes an alternative approach of utilizing direct responses to a survey on the social security earnings test for the elderly to provide new evidence on the sensitivity of the labor supply decision of workers aged between 60 and 64 with respect to the test. Our empirical results...

This paper provides an overview of the first wave of the Japanese Study of Ageing and Retirement (hereafter "JSTAR"). Using this rich and unique dataset, we describe in detail how middle-aged and elderly Japanese live in terms of economic, social, health, and family status. In this project, our...