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Earnings Experience and its Impact on 401(k) Contribution Behavior: The Roles of Earnings Shocks, Spousal Behavior and Pension Plan Details

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Abstract

When it comes to making contributions to their retirement savings, people's anxiety overcomes inertia. This study finds that while workers may tend toward a path of least resistance, economic shocks, spousal behavior, and changes in pension plan details continuously cause changes in 401(k) contributions.

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  • Teresa Ghilarducci & Joelle Saad-Lessler & Gayle Reznik, 2015. "Earnings Experience and its Impact on 401(k) Contribution Behavior: The Roles of Earnings Shocks, Spousal Behavior and Pension Plan Details," SCEPA working paper series. 2015-01, Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis (SCEPA), The New School.
    • Handle: RePEc:epa:cepawp:2015-01
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    1. Leslie A. Muller & John A. Turner, 2011. "The Persistence of Employee 401(k) Contributions Over a Major Stock Market Cycle: Evidence on the Limited Power of Inertia on Savings Behavior," Upjohn Working Papers 11-174, W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research.
    2. Christopher Ruhm, 2007. "A healthy economy can break your heart," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 44(4), pages 829-848, November.
    3. Mitchell, Olivia S. & Utkus, Stephen P. & Yang, Tongxuan (Stella), 2007. "Turning Workers Into Savers? Incentives, Liquidity, and Choice in 401(K) Plan Design," National Tax Journal, National Tax Association;National Tax Journal, vol. 60(3), pages 469-489, September.
    4. Engelhardt, Gary V. & Kumar, Anil, 2007. "Employer matching and 401(k) saving: Evidence from the health and retirement study," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 91(10), pages 1920-1943, November.
    5. Paul Flatau & June Galea & Ray Petridis, 2000. "Mental Health and Wellbeing and Unemployment," Australian Economic Review, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, vol. 33(2), pages 161-181, June.
    6. Keenan Dworak-Fisher, 2008. "Encouraging Participation in 401(k) Plans: Reconsidering the Employer Match," Working Papers 420, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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    Cited by:

    1. Teresa Ghilarducci & Joelle Saad-Lessler & Gayle Reznik, 2017. "Relative Wages in Aging America: Defined Contribution Wealth Inequality: Role of Earnings Shocks, Portfolio Choice, and Employer Contributions," SCEPA working paper series. 2017-06, Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis (SCEPA), The New School.
    2. Joelle Saad-Lessler & Teresa Ghilarducci & Gayle Reznik, 2017. "Defined Contribution Wealth Inequality: Role of Earnings Shocks, Portfolio Choice, and Employer Contributions," SCEPA working paper series. 2017-09, Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis (SCEPA), The New School.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Retirement; 401(k); Pensions; Shocks;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H55 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Social Security and Public Pensions
    • J26 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Retirement; Retirement Policies
    • J32 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Nonwage Labor Costs and Benefits; Retirement Plans; Private Pensions
    • D63 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement
    • E21 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Consumption; Saving; Wealth

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