This Chapter explores how an environment of persistent low returns influences saving, investing, and retirement behaviors, as compared to what in the past had been thought of as more "normal" financial conditions. Our calibrated lifecycle dynamic model with realistic tax, minimum distribution,...

This paper examines two behavioral factors that diminish people's ability to value a life-time income stream or annuity, drawing on a survey of about 4,000 adults in a U.S. nationally representative sample. By experimentally varying the degree of complexity, we provide the first causal evidence...

This paper examines the effect of the last increase in the eligibility age for New Zealand’s public pension, New Zealand Superannuation, on household saving rates. The age of eligibility was increased progressively from 60 to 65 years old between 1992 and 2001, with little forewarning. Drawing...

Projections for replacement rate achievable from two mandatory pillars of the pension system indicate a significant reduction in retirement income compared to regular professional activity. The designers of the new philosophy of retirement have made an assumption that all three pillars will play...

It has been shown that the social security system and other sorts of government transfers have helped poor elderly people, such as widows, to live alone in the U.S. This paper investigates whether government financial support contributed to the increase in the probability of the vulnerable...

This report builds on previous research on income data reporting to provide additional analyses and recommendations designed to improve the collection of income data in household surveys. The study was conducted for the U.S. Census Bureau and Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and...

In Ireland, the absence of statutory earnings-related pensions in the private sector leads to large variations in pension coverage and adequacy. This paper uses recent data from The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA) to evaluate how the pension system has performed for the current...

The recent crisis and interest rate declines have put the financial sustainability of the Dutch occupational pension system under severe strain. The benefit-cutting measures have been received by the public as an unexpected and almost unknown option inherent in the pension contracts. Adding to...