Exploring coping strategies of retired elderly persons in Ilorin metropolis, Nigeria: implication for counselling

Abstract

Retirement involves the transition from one stage in life to another. This transition has some implications which require coping strategies to survive the occurrences. This study, therefore, investigated coping strategies of retired elderly persons in Ilorin metropolis, Nigeria. The research design is a descriptive survey. The population of the study comprised elderly persons in Kwara State and the target population consisted of retired elderly persons in selected local government areas in Ilorin Metropolis. 300 retired elderly persons were purposively selected through snowball sampling, with the assistance of the pension office.

Questionnaires were used for data collection. The data was analysed using mean and analysis of variance. The results show that retired people adopted the coping strategies of having regular contact with people, spending time in nature (sleeping), performing regular exercise, seeking spiritual comfort, engaging in pleasurable hobbies and receiving support from family. However, there were significant differences in the coping strategies of retired persons in Ilorin Metropolis on the basis of gender, marital status and educational qualifications. The study recommended that male and female retirees should be encouraged to attend retirement counselling regularly, to adjust to the challenges of retirement. This implies that retirement counselling should be arranged for the elderly to ensure better health, emotional stability and physical functioning. This study has provided fresh information regarding coping with retirement that can be used for comparative studies as well as for informing retirement education and management within and outside employment in Nigeria, and perhaps elsewhere.