WASHINGTON — Contrary to what you may have heard, new retirees are doing better financially than those of previous generations, according­ to research being published recently by a mutual fund industry trade group.

“On average, more-recent generations of households have higher levels of resources to draw on in retirement than previous generations,” said a study by the Investment Company Institute. “Other measures also indicate improvements in retiree well-being. For example, the poverty rate among people aged 65 or older has declined from nearly 30 percent in 1966 to 9 percent in 2011.”