Planning and Financial Literacy: How Do Women Fare?

Annamaria Lusardi, Olivia S. Mitchell

NBER Working Paper No. 13750
Issued in January 2008
NBER Program(s):Economics of Aging

Many older US households have done little or no planning for retirement, and there is a substantial population that seems to undersave for retirement. Of particular concern is the relative position of older women, who are more vulnerable to old-age poverty due to their longer longevity. This paper uses data from a special module we devised on planning and financial literacy in the 2004 Health and Retirement Study. It shows that women display much lower levels of financial literacy than the older population as a whole. In addition, women who are less financially literate are also less likely to plan for retirement and be successful planners. These findings have important implications for policy and for programs aimed at fostering financial security at older ages.

Acknowledgments

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Document Object Identifier (DOI): 10.3386/w13750

Published: Annamaria Lusardi & Olivia S. Mitchell, 2008. "Planning and Financial Literacy: How Do Women Fare?," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 98(2), pages 413-17, May. citation courtesy of

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