Needs Assessment Regarding "Mental Well-being-enhancing" Programs for Soon-to-be and (Recently) Retired Individuals

NCT07630285 — Withdrawn, University Ghent

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Registry	NCT07630285
Status	Withdrawn - stopped 25-AUG-2026
Study type	Observational
Sponsor	University Ghent (Other)
Conditions	Retirement
Interventions	No intervention (observational study) (Other)
Dates	start 2026-06-04, primary completion 2026-08-25, completion 2026-08-25, first posted 2026-06-05, last updated 2026-09-29

-Summary

This study aims to improve understanding of the needs and well-being of individuals during the transition to retirement. The researchers seek to explore which activities and forms of support are perceived as helpful, which are already known or used, and which needs may currently remain unmet.

For the purpose of this study, "nearly or recently retired individuals" refers to people who are expected to retire within the next two years or who have retired within the past five years.

By examining participants' experiences and perceived needs during this transition period, the researchers aim to identify both existing strengths and potential gaps in the support currently available. Participants are invited to complete an online one-time questionnaire (10-15 minutes). The questionnaire includes questions about experiences related to the transition to retirement, awareness and use of activities or support initiatives, perceived strengths and limitations of these initiatives, and factors that may facilitate or hinder participation. The findings of this study may contribute to the development of recommendations to strengthen the support and resources available for (nearly) retired individuals in Flanders (Belgium).

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+Arms and interventions

No intervention (observational study) (Other): No intervention (observational study)

+Outcome measures

Primary outcomes

Background information [Baseline. Completing the questionnaire will take about 10-15 minutes]: Personal information (self-developed questionnaire): age, gender identity, cultural background, education level, financial situation (strained to comfortable), type of municipality (rural to large city).
Background information: transition to retirement and retirement status [Baseline. Completing the questionnaire will take about 10-15 minutes.]: Questions on retirement status and transition (self-developed): current retirement status (yes/no and duration); work related stress before retirement (5 Likert scale questions); transition (unvoluntary/voluntary, early retirement, planned/unplanned); outlook on retirement (povelsitive to negative)
Experience with transition to retirement [Baseline. Completing the questionnaire will take about 10-15 minutes]: self-developed questionnaire based on previous studies (see references): rating impact of 21 aspects on their transition to retirement (5-point Likert scale; no impact to very strong impact); emotional impact of retirement
Experience with retirement: language, framing and identity [Baseline. Completing the questionnaire will take about 10-15 minutes]: self-developed questionnaire: preferred terminology (senior, elderly, retired,...); outlook on retirement (statements to be rated on 5-point Likert scale - totally disagree to totally agree)
Experienced needs [Baseline. Completing the questionnaire will take about 10-15 minutes]: self-developed questionnaire: social network (very broad social network to feeling isolated); 9 domains to be rated on whether they needed support (needed and received, needed but did not receive, not needed);
Knowledge and use of existing support and resources [Baseline. Completing the questionnaire will take about 10-15 minutes]: self-developed questionnaire: indicating to what degree (5-point Likert scale) they know, have used or would use a list of existing support resources (11 items). Open question for alternatives; framing: would they use these initiatives if directed at 'seniors' or 'elderly'; barriers to using existing resources (to be chosen from a list of 12 +14 +16 items or 'other'); facilitators to using existing resources (to be chosen from a list of 11 items or 'other'); preferences in activities or resources (format, to be chosen from a list of 7 items); to what degree do they find 3 new types of help appealing
Communication and implementation [Baseline. Completing the questionnaire will take about 10-15 minutes]: self-developed questionnaire: through whom would they like to find out about activities or resources (7 options + 'other'); through which channels would they like to find out about activities or resources (7 options + 'other'); at what time of their transition to retirement would they like to find out about activities or resources (9 options)

+Eligibility

Sex: All, ages: 18 Years to any, accepts healthy volunteers

Inclusion Criteria:

* Aged 18 years or older
* Being within a period ranging from two years prior to retirement up to five years after retirement
* Having access to the internet
* Having sufficient proficiency in the Dutch language

Exclusion Criteria:

* Not meeting the inclusion criteria

+Publications

Wells, Y., deVaus, D., Kendig, H., Quine, S., Petralia, W., & Carlton, V. (2006). Healthy retirement project incorporating healthy retirement project (1997-1999) health and well-being in retirement (2000-2002). Lincoln Gerontology Centre: La Trobe University.
Floyd FJ, Haynes SN, Doll ER, Winemiller D, Lemsky C, Burgy TM, Werle M, Heilman N. Assessing retirement satisfaction and perceptions of retirement experiences. Psychol Aging. 1992 Dec;7(4):609-21. doi: 10.1037//0882-7974.7.4.609. PMID 1466830

+Investigators

Gwendolyn Portzky, Principal investigator, Flemish Centre of Expertise in Suicide Prevention (Ghent University)