近日，北大国发院雷晓燕教授与中央财经大学刘宏教授合作的论文“Gender difference in the impact of retirement on cognitive abilities:  Evidence from urban China”在比较经济学和制度经济学领域的国际权威期刊Journal of Comparative Economics上面发表。

本文考察了中国城镇正规部门的退休对不同性别人群的认知功能的影响，并探讨了其内在机制。利用中国健康与养老追踪调查（CHARLS）2011–2015的数据，本研究发现退休对认知的影响存在显著的性别差异。退休对男性有显著的正向影响，对女性则有负向影响。进一步研究表明，对于那些以前从事蓝领工作的男性来说，退休对其认知的有利影响更大，主要在于他们退休后的生活方式相比于退休前更加积极，更有益于认知的改善。但是我们同时也发现，退休后生活方式的改变不能完全解释退休对认知影响的性别差异，法定退休年龄的差异可能是另一个潜在作用机制。

面对日益萎缩的劳动力和迫在眉睫的养老金危机，中国打算在未来五年内逐步提高法定退休年龄。关于提高退休年龄的政策辩论需要考虑退休对老年人生活各方面的影响，包括认知衰退，因为老年时期的认知障碍会带来巨大的公共卫生负担。但是，关于退休影响的实证研究在中国还比较缺乏，本文既丰富了相关文献，其结论也具有重要的政策意义。

Abstract：
This paper examines the impact of retirement on cognitive functioning by gender in urban China and investigates the underlying mechanisms. Based on data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study, the paper uses the mandatory retirement ages and different policy enforcement between the public and private sectors as instruments for retirement status. The analysis finds substantial gender heterogeneity in the effect of retirement on cognition, with a positive and significant effect for males, but a negative and less significant effect for females. The beneficial effects on cognition are stronger for male blue-collar workers, who are likely to pursue a more active lifestyle at retirement. Further investigation shows that the results are partly driven by differential behavioral changes at retirement, and the gender difference in retirement ages may also play a potential role.