A majority of older Americans are optimistic they’ll recoup losses from their workplace retirement plans, but at the same time they’re re-evaluating their approach to retirement planning, a survey says.

About two-thirds say they’ll likely pursue investments that offer a guaranteed income stream, according to Prudential Financial, which sells annuities for retirement purposes.

The company’s poll of 1,001 people ages 45 to 75 with $100,000 or more in retirement savings was released last week. Seven in 10 people polled say that being too aggressive in a portfolio is riskier than being too conservative.

Overall, the investors estimate that more than a third of the assets in their workplace retirement plans were lost in the recent market downturn. Yet 62 percent think they will recoup their losses, and two-thirds of this optimistic group think they can recover the money within five years.

Of those polled, 52 percent say they’re behind schedule for their retirement goals, thanks to the market downturn; 41 percent say they may need to postpone retirement; and 21 percent say they’ve already delayed retiring.

Retirees living modestly

Among those who have already retired, 47 percent say they’re living modestly or struggling amid the recession—a lifestyle that apparently most didn’t expect.

In a separate survey by Prudential released in October, recent retirees were asked what their biggest surprise has been in retirement. More than a third, 38 percent, said the stock market decline, and 14 percent said health care costs. About 10 percent said they were surprised about how well they were faring.

That poll also illuminated the differing expectations about funding retirement between retirees and people still working. Thirty-nine percent of recent retirees said they are living primarily on Social Security, a pension, or both. But 61 percent of people still employed said they expect to use their savings to live comfortably in retirement.

Other findings from the most recent survey:

• 77 percent say they’ll pay more attention to their investments after the recession.

• 73 percent of retirees say they’re exploring new ways to grow their assets.

• 52 percent say they hesitate to invest more in stocks and mutual funds.

Growth potential of stocks

Despite the concerns about stocks and mutual funds, it’s a big mistake to overlook stocks in a retirement portfolio, says William Pitt, principal and managing director of Evermay Wealth Management in Washington. Even though equities brought down retirement plan accounts last year and for part of this year, investors are now seeing a rebounding market that’s driving up account balances.

“You need some growth to get where you need to be” for retirement, Pitt says. “As risky as it seemed to be in the market, a larger risk would be to move to fixed-income [investments] right now,” he adds. “Equities still provide the real growth that clients need to maximize their savings.”

Prudential also surveyed people older than 50 who switched jobs multiple times in the past 10 years and asked them about their retirement preparedness. In general, they aren’t as optimistic as workers who stayed with the same employers.

Nearly two-thirds (60 percent) of those who changed employers say they are behind schedule in their retirement savings, compared with 47 percent of those who hadn’t switched jobs. Moreover, more people who switched jobs say they anticipate delaying their retirement—46 percent versus 35 percent.

More than one-third (34 percent) of those who had changed jobs say they feel a lack of job security hurt their retirement prospects, compared with 17 percent of the people who hadn’t changed jobs. And only 51 percent feel positive about their retirement prospects, compared with 70 percent of those who hadn’t moved to another company.

Carole Fleck is a senior editor at the AARP Bulletin.