Financial Literacy and Planning: Implications for Retirement Wellbeing / Annamaria Lusardi, Olivia S. Mitchell.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Lusardi, Annamaria.

Contributor:

National Bureau of Economic Research.

Mitchell, Olivia S.

Series:

Working Paper Series (National Bureau of Economic Research) no. w17078.

NBER working paper series no. w17078

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource: illustrations (black and white);

Other Title:

Financial Literacy and Planning

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, Mass. National Bureau of Economic Research 2011.

Summary:

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 how people make financial plans, collect the information needed to make these plans, and implement the plans. We show that financial illiteracy is widespread among older Americans, particularly women, minorities, and the least educated. We also find that the financially savvy are more likely to plan and to succeed in their planning, and they rely on formal methods such as retirement calculators, retirement seminars, and financial experts, instead of family/relatives or co-workers. These results have implications for targeted financial education efforts.

Notes:

Print version record

May 2011.