# Lifestyle changes after retirement: a Grounded Theory

## TL;DR

This study explores how professors' lifestyles change after retirement, focusing on increased self-care and new activities.

## Contribution

It presents a grounded theory on how retired professors adopt healthier and more active lifestyles post-retirement.

## Key findings

- Retired professors gain schedule flexibility, leading to positive lifestyle changes.
- Self-care actions like exercise, healthy eating, and social engagement increase.
- Social interactions influence the value placed on self-care during retirement.

## Abstract

to understand the changes that occur in professors’ lifestyle after retirement with regard to self-care.

qualitative research that used Symbolic Interactionism as a theoretical framework and Grounded Theory, a constructivist approach, as a methodological framework. Data were collected in 2022, through remote interviews with 18 professors from a public university in northwestern Paraná.

with retirement, professors have greater availability and flexibility in their schedules, favoring positive changes in lifestyle, with greater appreciation of self-care actions, such as physical exercise and healthy eating, taking care of appearance, stimulating memory, a more active social life and adopting hobbies, expressed in the category “Enjoying retirement and taking up new activities”.

retired professors, influenced by their social interactions with friends, family, healthcare professionals and co-workers throughout their lives, at this particular stage, tend to value self-care more.

compreender as mudanças ocorridas no estilo de vida após a aposentadoria de professores universitários no tocante ao autocuidado.

pesquisa qualitativa que utilizou como referencial teórico o Interacionismo Simbólico e, metodológico, a Teoria Fundamentada nos Dados, vertente construtivista. Os dados foram coletados em 2022, mediante entrevistas remotas com 18 professores de universidade pública do noroeste do Paraná.

com a aposentadoria, professores têm maior disponibilidade e flexibilidade de horários, favorecendo mudanças positivas no estilo de vida, com maior valorização de ações de autocuidado, como prática de exercícios físicos e alimentação saudável, cuidados com aparência, estimulação da memória, vida social mais ativa e adoção de hobbies, expressas na categoria “Desfrutando da aposentadoria e realizando novas atividades”.

professores aposentados, por influência de suas interações sociais com amigos, familiares, profissionais de saúde e colegas de trabalho ao longo da vida, nesta etapa em particular, tendem a valorizar mais o autocuidado.