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A Fistful of Dollars: Financial Incentives, Peer Information, and Retirement Savings

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  • Rob Bauer
  • Inka Eberhardt
  • Paul Smeets

Abstract

To understand what motivates individuals to look at their pension situation and make adequate savings decisions, we conduct two field experiments with 226,946 and 257,433 pension fund participants. We find peer-information statements do not increase the rate at which individuals check their pension information, but lottery-type financial incentives do. Offering a few large prizes rather than many small prizes is most effective. However, the uptake of pension information does not lead to improved pension knowledge nor to increased self-reported savings three weeks after our intervention.Authors have furnished an Internet Appendix, which is available on the Oxford University Press Web site next to the link to the final published paper online.

Suggested Citation

  • Rob Bauer & Inka Eberhardt & Paul Smeets, 2022. "A Fistful of Dollars: Financial Incentives, Peer Information, and Retirement Savings," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 35(6), pages 2981-3020.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:rfinst:v:35:y:2022:i:6:p:2981-3020.
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    1. Grossmann, Max & Hackethal, Andreas & Laudi, Marten & Pauls, Thomas, 2023. "Conform to the norm. Peer information and sustainable investments," SAFE Working Paper Series 412, Leibniz Institute for Financial Research SAFE.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • C93 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Field Experiments
    • D83 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Search; Learning; Information and Knowledge; Communication; Belief; Unawareness
    • G51 - Financial Economics - - Household Finance - - - Household Savings, Borrowing, Debt, and Wealth
    • G53 - Financial Economics - - Household Finance - - - Financial Literacy

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