Financial Knowledge and Financial Literacy at the Household Level

Gustman, Alan L.; Steinmeier, Thomas L.; Tabatabai, Nahid

doi:10.1257/aer.102.3.309

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American Economic Review: Vol. 102 No. 3 (May 2012)

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Financial Knowledge and Financial Literacy at the Household Level

Article Citation

Gustman, Alan L., Thomas L. Steinmeier, and Nahid Tabatabai. 2012. "Financial Knowledge and Financial Literacy at the Household Level." American Economic Review, 102(3): 309-13.

DOI: 10.1257/aer.102.3.309

Abstract

There is evidence of a relation between numeracy and wealth held outside of pensions and Social Security. With pensions and Social Security accounting for half of wealth at retirement, and evidence that those with pensions save more in other forms, one would expect to find knowledge of pensions and Social Security influencing retirement saving. Yet we find no evidence that knowledge of pensions and Social Security is related to nonpension, non-Social Security wealth, to numeracy, or that it plays an intermediate role in the numeracy-wealth relation. Our findings raise questions about policies that would enhance numeracy to increase retirement saving.

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Authors

Gustman, Alan L. (Dartmouth College)
Steinmeier, Thomas L. (TX Tech U)
Tabatabai, Nahid (Dartmouth College)

JEL Classifications

D14: Personal Finance
D31: Personal Income, Wealth, and Their Distributions