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Social Security and Retirement Decision: A Positive and Normative Approach

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Author Info
Cremer, Helmuth
Lozachmeur, Jean-Marie
Pestieau, Pierre

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Abstract

Social insurance for the elderly is judged responsible for the widely observed trend towards early retirement. In a world of laissez-faire or in a first-best setting, there would be no such trend. However, when first-best instruments are not available, because health and productivity are not observable, the optimal social insurance policy may imply a distortion on the retirement decision. The main point we make is that while there is no doubt that retirement systems induce an excessive bias towards early in many countries, a complete elimination of this bias (i.e., a switch to an actuarially fair system) is not the right answer. This is so and for two reasons. First, some distortions are second-best optimal. This is the normative argument. Second, and on the positive side, the elimination of the bias might be problematic from a political perspective. Depending on the political process, it may either not be feasible or alternatively it may tend to undermine the political support for the pension system itself.

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Paper provided by C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers in its series CEPR Discussion Papers with number 5542.

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Date of creation: Mar 2006
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Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:5542

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Related research
Keywords: early retirement; majority voting; optimal income taxation; social security;

Other versions of this item:

Find related papers by JEL classification:
H21 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Efficiency; Optimal Taxation
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

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References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. Cremer, Helmuth & Pestieau, Pierre, 2002. "The Double Dividend of Postponing Retirement," IDEI Working Papers 144, Institut d'Économie Industrielle (IDEI), Toulouse, revised 2003. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  2. Fernandez, Raquel & Rodrik, Dani, 1991. "Resistance to Reform: Status Quo Bias in the Presence of Individual-Specific Uncertainty," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 81(5), pages 1146-55, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  3. Conde-Ruiz, J. Ignacio & Galasso, Vincenzo, 2004. "The macroeconomics of early retirement," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(9-10), pages 1849-1869, August. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  4. Courtney Coile & Jonathan Gruber, 2000. "Social Security and Retirement," NBER Working Papers 7830, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. Casamatta, Georges & Cremer, Helmuth & Pestieau, Pierre, 2003. "Voting on Pensions with Endogenous Retirement Age," CEPR Discussion Papers 3778, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  6. Mikhail Golosov & Aleh Tsyvinski, 2004. "Designing Optimal Disability Insurance: A Case for Asset Testing," NBER Working Papers 10792, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  7. Diamond, Peter & Sheshinski, Eytan, 1995. "Economic aspects of optimal disability benefits," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 57(1), pages 1-23, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  8. Cremer, Helmuth & Lozachmeur, Jean-Marie & Pestieau, Pierre, 2004. "Retirement Age and Health Expenditures," CEPR Discussion Papers 4774, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  9. Sveinbjörn Blöndal & Stefano Scarpetta, 1999. "The Retirement Decision in OECD Countries," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 202, OECD, Economics Department. [Downloadable!]
  10. Cremer, Helmuth & Lozachmeur, Jean-Marie & Pestieau, Pierre, 2004. "Disability Testing and Retirement," CEPR Discussion Papers 4773, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  11. Jonathan Gruber & David Wise, 2005. "Social Security Programs and Retirement around the World: Fiscal Implications, Introduction and Summary," NBER Working Papers 11290, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  12. Sheshinski, Eytan, 1972. "The Optimal Linear Income-Tax," Review of Economic Studies, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 39(3), pages 297-302, July. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  13. J. A. Mirrlees & P. Diamond, 1982. "Social Insurance with Variable Retirement and Private Saving," Working papers 296, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Department of Economics.
  14. Cremer, Helmuth & Lozachmeur, Jean-Marie & Pestieau, Pierre, 2002. "Social Security, Retirement Age and Optimal Income Taxation," CESifo Working Paper Series CESifo Working Paper No. , CESifo Group Munich. [Downloadable!]
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  15. Diamond, P. A. & Mirrlees, J. A., 1978. "A model of social insurance with variable retirement," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 10(3), pages 295-336, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  16. Pierre Pestieau, 2001. "Are We Retiring too Early?," CESifo Working Paper Series CESifo Working Paper No. , CESifo Group Munich. [Downloadable!]
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  17. Jonathan Gruber & David A. Wise, 1999. "Social Security and Retirement around the World," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number grub99-1.
  18. J. Ignacio Conde-Ruiz & Vincenzo Galasso, . "Early retirement," Working Papers 2003-03, FEDEA. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  19. Helmuth Cremer & Jean-Marie Lozachmeur & Pierre Pestieau, 2004. "Optimal Retirement and Disability Benefits with Audit," FinanzArchiv: Public Finance Analysis, Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen, vol. 60(3), pages 278-, September.
  20. Diamond, Peter A & Mirrlees, James A, 1986. " Payroll-Tax Financed Social Insurance with Variable Retirement," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 88(1), pages 25-50.
  21. Casamatta, Georges & Cremer, Helmuth & Pestieau, Pierre, 2004. "Is There a Political Support for the Double Burden on Prolonged Activity?," CEPR Discussion Papers 4706, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
Full references

Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Torben Andersen, 2006. "Increasing Longevity and Social Security Reforms," CESifo Working Paper Series CESifo Working Paper No. , CESifo Group Munich. [Downloadable!]
  2. Enrique Fatás & Juan A. Lacomba & Francisco M. Lagos & Ana I. Moro, 2008. "Experimental tests on consumption, savings and pensions," ThE Papers 08/14, Department of Economic Theory and Economic History of the University of Granada.. [Downloadable!]
  3. David E. Bloom & David Canning & Günther Fink & Jocelyn E. Finlay, 2008. "Demographic Change, Institutional Settings, and Labor Supply," PGDA Working Papers 4208, Program on the Global Demography of Aging. [Downloadable!]
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