Showing 1 - 10 of 271
Many economists and policy-makers argue that households do not save enough to maintain an adequate standard of living during retirement. However, there is no consensus on the answer to the underlying question about what this standard should be, despite the fact that it is crucial for the design...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10003923525
How can retirement savings be increased? We explore a unique policy change in the context of the German pension system … public pension payments. This reform did not change the level of pensions, but only provided information to individuals about … these letters on the behavior of individuals. We find an increase in tax-deductible private retirement savings and provide …
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10011782119
Two competing explanations for why consumers have trouble with financial decisions are gaining momentum. One is that people are financially illiterate since they lack understanding of simple economic concepts and cannot carry out computations such as computing compound interest, which could...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10013130966
savings plan has been shown to boost wealth. Overall, financial literacy, both directly and indirectly, is found to have a …
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10013121050
We present new evidence on financial literacy and retirement preparation in the Netherlands based on two surveys conducted before and after the onset of the financial crisis. We document that while financial knowledge did not increase from 2005 to 2010, significantly more individuals planned for...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10013124236
Hyperbolic discounting with naiveté is widely believed to provide a better explanation than exponential discounting of why people borrow so much and why they wait so long to save for retirement. We reach a different set of conclusions. We show that if financial planning is enriched to include...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10010479952
If individuals are unable or unwilling to borrow, a higher than desired second pillar pension capital may induce people to retire earlier than they would have in the absence of such a scheme. Individuals thus leave the workforce as soon as the retirement income is deemed sufficient and the...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10002757821
We examine financial literacy in Germany using data from the SAVE survey. We find that knowledge of basic financial concepts is lacking among women, the less educated, and those living in East Germany. In particular, those with low education and low income in East Germany have little financial...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10013123985
We examine financial literacy in the United States using the new National Financial Capability Study, wherein we demonstrate that financial literacy is particularly low among the young, women, and the less-educated. Moreover, Hispanics and African-Americans score the least well on financial...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10013124228
Relatively little is known about why people fail to plan for retirement and whether planning and information costs might affect retirement saving patterns. This paper reports on a purpose-built survey module on planning and financial literacy for the Health and Retirement Study which measures...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10013124838