CHAPTER 1
 INTRODUCTION

 The literature has shown evidence of race differences in retirement behavior.

However, most of the research has overlooked women, with only a few exceptions.

Researchers have found that African American women have more continuous patterns of

work throughout the life course than White women (Belgrave, 1988), a finding opposite

that found among men, which suggests that the race-retirement relationship may also

vary by gender. This also underscores the need for further research on race differences in

women's labor force exit pathways. The few studies that have explored race differences

in women's retirement have used different cohorts and measurement strategies and have

shown mixed results. For instance, Belgrave's (1988) study of women born between 1917

and 1921, used cross-sectional data and labor force participation rates (LFPRs) to

demonstrate that African American women have more continuous patterns of labor force

participation throughout the life course. Pienta, Burr, and Mutchler's (1994) cross-

sectional analysis of the 1920 to 1929 birth cohort, on the other hand, operationalized

women's labor force participation as full-time work, part-time work, or not working.

They found no significant race differences in women's labor force statuses.

 Although LFPRs have been the basis for much of the previous retirement

research, LFPRs have masked important race differences that are revealed by further

classifying individuals who have exited the labor force into disabled and nondisabled

groups (Hayward, Friedman, and Chen, 1996). Distinguishing between retirees and the

work disabled rather than relying solely on labor force participation rates may provide