When Priests Retire1.

Rosow's “Continuity and Discontinuity—Deprivation and Gain” conceptual framework for analyzing later life adjustment is used to study retired diocesan priests. Access to an utilization of opportunities for continuing earlier life patterns as provided by the Church have significant impact upon the retirement adjustment of priests. The data, collected by means of intensive interviews, resulted in three retirement patterns. These patterns were consistent with Rosow's framework and show the close tie between an organizational context for retirement and the individual retirement experience. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]