REATIVA: An Efficient Health Promotion Program during Retirement Transition

Eur J Investig Health Psychol Educ. 2022 Sep 11;12(9):1358-1368. doi: 10.3390/ejihpe12090095.

Abstract

Retirement is a major life transition in adulthood that can cause vulnerability in individuals and their families. REATIVA is a face-to-face health intervention program that aims to promote the perception of self-efficacy and facilitate the transition to retirement of individuals and families. This article presents the efficiency of this program. A quasi-experimental study was conducted on 56 new retirees and families enrolled in the Portuguese National Health Service. The efficiency of the program was evaluated with the General Self-Efficacy (GSE) scale, which assesses self-efficacy, and the Retirement Adaptation Perception (EPFAR) scale, which assesses the perception of adaptation to retirement. The data were processed in IBM SPSS 27 software. An average positive change was found regarding the GSE and EPFAR in all participants of the REATIVA program. Notably, the MANOVA test with Greenhouse-Geisser correction revealed a significant effect of the program over time in the EPFAR scale (F = 17.405, p = 0.001; η2 = 0.554; PO = 0.982). The REATIVA program was found to be efficient in the promotion of individual and family health during the transition to retirement as an active and healthy aging process. New methodologies and intervention strategies were identified that could improve the efficacy of the program; namely, the involvement of more family members and using a blended approach.

Keywords: active aging; health promotion program; retirement.