In 1998, the Social Security Administration established the Retirement Research Consortium, with centers at three sites, Boston College, the University of Michigan, and the National Bureau of Economic Research, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The centers were charged with conducting and disseminating research on retirement trends, in order to assist governments, the public, and the media in understanding Social Security issues. They were also charged with training future retirement scholars.

The Center for Retirement Research at Boston College is directed by Drucker Professor of Management Sciences Alicia Munnell, a former director of research at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. Affiliates include MIT, the American Enterprise Institute, the Brookings Institution, and the Max Planck Institute. Nine Boston College graduate students and four undergraduates worked alongside the center’s staff last year as research assistants.

All of the center’s briefs and working papers are available online without charge. A sampling of recent titles:

“Households ‘At Risk’: A Closer Look at the Bottom Third,” by Alicia H. Munnell, Francesca Golub-Sass, Pamela Perun, and Anthony Webb, January 2007

“How Economic Security Changes During Retirement,” by Barbara A. Butrica, February 2007

“International Investments for Retirement Savers: Historical Evidence on Risk and Returns,” by Gary Burtless, February 2007

“Job Changes at Older Ages: Effects on Wages, Benefits, and Other Job Attributes,” by Richard W. Johnson and Janette Kawachi, February 2007

“Phased Retirement: Problems and Prospects,” by Robert Hutchens, February 2007

“Social Security Spouse and Survivor Benefits for the Modern Family,” by Melissa M. Favreault and C. Eugene Steuerle, February 2007

“What Happens to Health Benefits after Retirement?” by Richard W. Johnson, February 2007

“The Recent Trend Towards Later Retirement,” by Leora Friedberg, March 2007

“Medicaid and Long-Term Care: How Will Rising Costs Affect Services for an Aging Population?” by Howard Gleckman, April 2007

“Sharing Risk: The Netherlands’ New Approach to Pensions,” by Eduard H.M. Ponds and Bart van Riel, April 2007

“Social Security’s Financial Outlook: The 2007 Report in Perspective,” by Alicia H. Munnell, April 2007

“The Repeal of the Retirement Earnings Test and the Labor Supply of Older Men,” by Gary V. Engelhardt and Anil Kumar, May 2007

“Why Do Japanese Workers Remain in the Labor Force So Long?” by John B. Williamson and Masa Higo, May 2007

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