the aggregate consumption to income ratio. By standard intertemporal budget constraint logic, this ratio is linked to … expectations of future income and consumption growth rates. We investigate whether these expectations suffice to explain the shifts … in the consumption-income ratio that occur during disaster periods or whether, on the other hand, consumers become more …

We collect 2,735 estimates of the elasticity of intertemporal substitution in consumption from 169 published studies … after controlling for 30 aspects of study design. Our results suggest that income and asset market participation are the … most effective factors in explaining the heterogeneity: households in rich countries and countries with high stock market …