Professional Documents
Culture Documents
6 Perception and Attitude Towards
6 Perception and Attitude Towards
Interdisciplinary
Volume 13 Issue 1 Version 1.0 Year 2013
Type: Double Blind Peer Reviewed International Research Journal
Publisher: Global Journals Inc. (USA)
Online ISSN: 2249-460X & Print ISSN: 0975-587X
Perception and Attitude towards Pre-Retirement Counselling among Nigerian Civil Servants
Strictly as per the compliance and regulations of :
© 2013. Anthonia E. Inaja & Chima Ify Martha Rose. This is a research/review paper, distributed under the terms of the Creative
Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 Unported License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/), permitting all non
commercial use, distribution, and reproduction inany medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Perception and Attitude towards Pre-Retirement
Counselling among Nigerian Civil Servants
α σ
Anthonia E. Inaja & Chima Ify Martha Rose
Abstract - Retirement is usually a period of major changes in 2007). the combined effect of these situations and other
the lives of public servants. Most times, some people see such problems usually lead to serious disorientation, stress
changes as devastating and traumatic. In this study, public and a feeling of deprivation and boredom which unless
Year 2013
servants’ perception of retirement and their attitude towards
checked could sometimes degenerate into physical and
pre-retirement counselling was surveyed. A representative
mental problems. Apart from the psychological stress
sample of 1200 civil servants was selected using purposive
sampling approach. Responses were elicited from them using occasioned by diminished status of the retirees, the
a self-structured questionnaire to test one major proposition attendant deplorable financial condition attached to
that guided the study. Data analysis were carried out using retirement affects the retirees’ willingness to accept or
37
one-way ANOVA and tested at 0.05 alpha levels. Results of the adjust to the reality of life after retirement.
study showed that civil servants’ perception of retirement Workers in well-organised private sectors of the
R
employment for death. This group of workers who are
etirement means to stop or withdraw from
basically in public sector may seem to dread retirement
working simply because one has reached a
into retirement as destitutes. Retirees in Nigeria today III. Statement of the Problem
are more like beggars especially those who retire
without planning. Huge bribe is required of them for their Retirement or termination of work signifies a
documents to be processed, and if the money ever period of major change in the life of public servants.
materialised, they are expected to still give bribe before Such changes are usually devastating and traumatic in
they collect that which is legitimately theirs. This is not the life of the retiree, especially when the person
only bad but has the tendency to discourage public concerned did not prepare for this phase of life. The
servants who are still working or are about to retire. This adverse psychological and socio-economic disposition
according to Inaja (2007) explains why some workers identified to characterise retired civil servants due to
falsify their ages and documents so that retirement will functional discontinuation of their regular financial
not catch up with them fast. source of livelihood and its corresponding decline in
Year 2013
In the Nigerian society, some sort of review on social status cannot be overstated. Such challenges
retirement benefit was recently implemented. The include financial insufficiency, poor feeding, dysfunc-
Nigerian government has introduced social security tional family matters as well as psychological or
scheme as seen in the current Pension Reform Act that behaviour disorders like depression, hypertension,
was signed into law on 25th June 2004. In the Act, it is identity crisis, alcoholism, loneliness, fast ageing and ill
2
20
38
mandatory for employers as well as workers to make health occasioned at times by lots of good accommo-
defined contribution to the scheme for benefits to the dation among others. (Denga. 1986; Tokurboh 1998).
) Volume XIII Issue I Version I
workforce in old age or retirement and to meet other Some also experience loss of self-esteem due to lower
contingencies prior to termination of work. Given this status in which they find themselves on retirement from
innovation it is blurred how employees perceive a highly exalted position they had occupied as public
retirement, their attitude towards retirement and their servants. There is need therefore to investigate
preparation or planning towards it. This needs to be employees’ perception and attitude towards the
investigated. phenomenon. This is with the view of carrying out or
recommending comprehensive pre-retirement couns-
II. Theoretical Foundation: Burgess’s elling for staff.
Activity Theory Hypothesis : The one and only propositions
formulated to give direction to the study was:
This study is anchored on what is construed by
Public servants’ perception of retirement does
Tensley and Tenstey (1987) as the most popular theory
not significantly influence their attitude towards pre-
Global Journal of Human Social Science (HD
Year 2013
Table 1 : Summary of descriptive statistics for the influence of public servants’ perception of retirement on attitude
to pre-retirement counselling
Table 3 : Fishers LSD test of the influence of public servants perception of retirement on their attitude toward pre-
retirement counselling
MSW =
2
0.90
27.93a
Health related issues Low 1.53b -
4.22*c
Moderate 26.40 0.63
2
20
40 2.67*
High 1.77 27.0
3
24.4
) Volume XIII Issue I Version I
MSW =
4
-
2.82
Low 23.01a -0.32b
-
Management of loneliness Moderate 0.60c 23.33
2.25
High -5.66* 4.28*
25.8
3
53.3
MSW =
1
-
Low 22.04 -1.67 1.58
Change in physical environment Moderate -3.08* 23.71 0.09
High -3.18* 0.17 23.6
Global Journal of Human Social Science (HD
2
54.7
MSW =
4
VI. Discussion of Findings many did not own a personal car, home nor established
any income yielding venture. These facts, coupled with
The results of the test of the proposition showed the tradition of late commencement of payment of
that there was a significant influence of public servants’ gratuity and pension by government had placed burden
perception of retirement on their attitude to pre- on the retirees or even potential ones.
retirement counselling. This was so for all the four areas These results also replicate those of Denga
of income and expenditure management, health related (1982) and Nmezi (2005) who asserted that most
issues, management of loneliness and change in Nigerians who are faced with job loss or prospects of
physical environment. This finding is similar to some job loss perceive retirement as a termination of
extent with that of Gustman and Steinmeier (2002) that biological life. According to him, this feeling is mostly
carried out a research to demonstrate how many people expressed by those still strong enough to engage in
are misinformed about their retirement benefits and how paid work but have little or nothing to fall back on after
they behave irrationally even when their retirement reality retirement. In the same light, Atchley (1988) stated that
becomes clear. most people perceived retirement as a process that
Another finding which is similar to the findings involves separation of people from job role (termination
of the present study is that of Orhungur (2005) who of active work life) which is performed for pay and the
indicated that a good number of potential retirees say acquisition of the role of retired persons.
they had not been adequately prepared for retirement.
This according to him was manifested in the fact that
Year 2013
retirement. In this way, they would have proper
perspective of retirement, a more positive attitude
towards it as well as sufficiently embrace pre-retirement
counselling services.