It is generally agreed that a shift from the industrial society to the postindustrial society took place during the "Golden Decades" (around 1950-1980) in the West European Countries. Two hypotheses have been proposed about the consequences of this evolution for participation in voluntary associations: the first hypothesis posits the decline of participation as an effect of rising individualism; the second hypothesis rejects the previous one and claims that a shift has occurred in the pattern of participation, in particular a shift towards a more expressive associationnism. This study is based on two surveys carried out in Switzerland in 1979 and 1994, in which two cohorts of young retirees (65-74 years old) were interviewed. The surveys included biographical data about their participations of the interviews around the age of 50. The results reject the first hypothesis and support the second one, but in a revised form: the shift in the pattern of participation involves a higher involvement not only in the expressive associations, but also in those oriented towards social participation and solidarity.