In many aspects, the workplace has displaced the neighborhood and civic activities as the focal point of one’s social structure. Rabina Cozijnsen, from VU University Amsterdam (The Netherlands), and colleagues found that one’s workplace serves a primary role in prompting social interaction and developing personal relationships. The team reports that men and women who retired just ten years ago, at the beginning of the 21st century, were more likely to maintain (or even gain) work-related personal ties after retirement, as compared to those who retired in the 1990’s. Further, they observed that a majority of more recent retirees have at least one work-related tie in their personal network. The researchers posit that: “Retirement has become less disruptive. Retirees seem more inclined to form intrinsically rewarding work-related relationships that continue to be important following retirement.”
