Throughout the world, policy makers are concerned about the impact that population aging will have on the financial security of households and nations. Key questions include: (1) are the aging, and soon to be aged populations, adequately preparing for old age? and (2) how does financial...

A fairly extensive literature from the field of empirical psychology has provided evidence that personality factors and attitudes toward credit may influence individuals' debt financing decisions. This paper investigates the importance of these factors by analysing the results of an original...

Every major financial crisis leaves its unique footprint on economic thought. The early banking crises taught us the importance of financial sector liquidity and the lender of last resort. The Great Depression highlighted the devastating effects of bank failures and the need for counter-cyclical...

What is the role of the financial sector in explaining business cycles? This question is as old as the field of macroeconomics, and an extensive body of research conducted since the Global Financial Crisis of 2008 has offered new answers. The specific idea put forward in this article is that...

We use individual level credit bureau data to document which individuals saw the biggest rise in household debt from 2000 to 2007 and the biggest rise in defaults from 2007 to 2010. Growth in household debt from 2000 to 2007 was substantially larger for individuals with the lowest initial credit...