1. The changing balance of work and retirement Martin Kohli and Martin Rein; 2. The evolution of early exit: a comparative analysis of labor force participation patterns Klaus Jacobs, Martin Kohli and Martin Rein; 3. Testing the industry-mix hypothesis of early exit Klaus Jacobs, Martin Kohli and Martin Rein; 4. The Netherlands: an extreme case Bert de Vroom and Martin Blomsma; 5. France: massive exit through unemployment compensation Anne-Marie Guillemard; 6. Germany: The diversity of pathways Klaus Jacobs, Martin Kohli and Martin Rein; 7. Great Britain: The contradictions of early exit Frank Laczko and Chris Phillipson; 8. The United States: The privatization of exit Harold L. Sheppard; 9. Sweden: partial exit Eskil Wadensjö; 10. Hungary: exit from the state economy Julia Szalai; 11. Pathways and their prospects: a comparative interpretation of the meaning of early exit Anne-Marie Guillemard and Herman van Gunsteren; Index.

In all Western countries, people are leaving work earlier than ever before - at a time when their life expectancy keeps increasing. How has this paradoxical process been brought about? What is the impact of labour markets and social policy? And what will be the effect of this massive lengthening of retirement? Time for Retirement addresses the 'aging of society' and the restructuring of the life course in terms of the changing relationship between work and reitrement. Detailed information based on the retirement policies of seven countries provides the basis for a comparative analysis aimed at assessing the range of possible political responses to these changes. The editors and contributors are among the leading social scientists in the field of life-course studies, aging, and social policy.