Neoliberalism and active aging: The role of business retirement preparation programs

Abstract

Purpose: To analyze the relationship between the rise of the retirement preparation programs (RPP) and the transformations in the ideological environment of organizations associated with the advent of the spirit of neoliberal capitalism. Originality/value: Few studies of Brazilian literature have addressed the dissemination of RPP from critical perspectives and, especially, in the business environment. Most of the research has addressed public institutions. Concerning international literature, the article innovates by associating the rise of the idea of active aging with the thesis of the new spirit of capitalism, developed by Luc Boltanski and Ève Chiapello. Unlike existing international studies, the analysis focuses on RPP as instruments for disseminating the dominant order in the organizational sphere. Design/methodology/approach: To meet the proposed objectives, qualitative research was carried out. Data were collected from nine informants from five consultancies that work in the structuring of corporate RPP and two companies that have recently structured their programs. A thematic content analysis was performed. Findings: The results reveal that the developed RPP promote conceptions of active aging in line with the new spirit of capitalism and changes in the forms of work organization driven by neoliberalism, which made it possible to conceptualize RPP as an object that incorporates and facilitates the diffusion of active aging and constructing an active retirement. The study advances in the understanding of the implications of new discourses on old age for organizations and stimulates a more critical comprehensionof RPP in public and private organizations.