Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84 Page 85 Page 86 Page 87 Page 88 Page 89 Page 90 Page 91 Page 92 Page 93 Page 94 Page 95 Page 96 Page 97 Page 98 Page 99 Page 100 Page 101 Page 102 Page 103 Page 104 Page 105 Page 106 Page 107 Page 108IN TROD UCTIO N 16 expect to work in the future, their estimates of how long they will live, the likelihood of giving major financial assistance to family members in the future, whether or not they expect to leave a bequest and the amount of that bequest, and whether they think they will enter a nursing home or move to a new home or other living arrange- ment in the future. Initial analysis of these data suggests that expectations have an important influence on the decisions that people make. Inclusion of Experimental Modules There are limits to the number of questions that can be asked and answered in a population sur- vey, and there is great value in maintaining that same core of questions in a longitudinal study. Alternative vehicles may be needed, however, to allow researchers to explore narrowly focused topics or test new survey ideas. The HRS uses “experimental modules”—short sequences of questions administered to randomly selected subgroups of participants at the end of the survey. To date, more than 70 experimental modules have asked about physiological capacity, early childhood experiences, personality, quality of life, employment opportunities, use of complementary and alternative medicines, parental wealth, activi- ties and time use, nutrition, medical directives, living wills, retirement expectations and planning, sleep, and functional ability. Appendix A provides more information about these modules. Linkages to Other Datasets Despite the comprehensive nature of the HRS, limitations exist in terms of what can be learned from population interviews. To provide more detailed and elaborate information in particular areas, the HRS team asks participants for permis- sion to link their interview responses to other data resources, as described below. Linked administrative records are available only as restricted data under special agreements with a highly restricted group of individual researchers that guarantee security and confidentiality. Social Security Records The Social Security Administration keeps detailed records on the past employment and earnings of most Americans. For those who have applied for Social Security payments, records of benefit decisions and benefits paid, including those paid through the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) programs, are available to researchers. By link- ing these records to HRS participants’ interview responses, a significantly richer body of data can be analyzed to better understand the relationships between health and economic circumstances, public and private retirement policies, and the work and retirement decisions that people make as they age. Medicare Records Through the administration of the Medicare program, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (formerly the Health Care Financing Administration) maintain claims records for the medical services received by essentially all Americans age 65 and older and those less than 65 years who receive Medicare benefits. These records include comprehensive information about hospital stays, outpatient services, physician services, home health care, and hospice care. When linked to the HRS interview data, this supplementary information provides far more detail on the health circumstances and medical treatments received by HRS participants than would otherwise be available. For instance, these Medicare records will enhance research on the implications of health changes, the influence of health-related behaviors on health, the relationships between health and economic circumstances as they evolve jointly over the course of later life, and the impact of supplementary insurance on medical care decisions. Employer Surveys and Related Data Data from HRS interviews have been supple- mented with information obtained from or about participants’ employers, without revealing the identities of HRS participants to employers. One important area of focus is pension plans. While most pension-eligible workers have some idea of the benefits available through their pension plans, they generally are not knowledgeable about detailed provisions of the plans. By linking HRS interview data with specific information on pension-plan provisions, researchers can better understand the contribution of the pension to eco- nomic circumstances and the effects of the pen- sion structure on work and retirement decisions. Background and Development of the HRS The HRS began as two distinct though closely related surveys that were merged in 1998 and are administered under the cooperative agreement between the NIA and the University of Michigan’s Institute for Social Research. The first study, referred to as the “original HRS,” was initially administered in 1992 to a nationally representa- tive sample of Americans between the ages of 51 and 61 (strictly speaking, born in the years 1931 through 1941). In the case of married couples, both spouses (including spouses who were younger than 51 or older than 61) were also interviewed. These participants continue to be contacted every 2 years as part of the ongoing HRS. The second survey, originally referred to as the Study of Assets and Health Dynamics Among the