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Dissaving After Retirement: Testing the Pure Life Cycle Hypothesis

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Author Info
B. Douglas Bernheim

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Abstract

In this paper, we examine several aspects of saving and dissaving after retirement. First, we argue that existing evidence on bequeathable age-wealth profiles is suspect, and provide new evidence based on longitudinal data indicating that significant dissaving may occur,particularly among single individuals and early retirees. Second, we argue that, in the presence of annuities, estimates of dissaving should be adjusted by including the simple discounted value of benefits in total wealth. Such adjustments reveal relatively little dissaving among any group of retirees. Finally, we test the pure life cycle hypothesis by observing the behavioral response of rates of accumulation to involuntary annuitization, and find empirical refutation of life cycle implications.

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Paper provided by National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc in its series NBER Working Papers with number 1409.

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Date of creation: Nov 1987
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Publication status: published as Bernheim, B. Douglas. "Dissaving After Retirement: Testing the Pure Life Cycle Hypothesis," Issues in Pension Economics, ed. by Z. Bodie, J.B. Shoven, D.A. Wise, Chicago: UCP, 1987.
Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:1409

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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. Mervyn A. King & Louis Dicks-Mireaux, 1982. "Asset Holdings and the Life Cycle," NBER Working Papers 0614, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  2. Davies, James B, 1981. "Uncertain Lifetime, Consumption, and Dissaving in Retirement," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 89(3), pages 561-77, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  3. Atkinson, A B, 1971. "The Distribution of Wealth and the Individual Life-cycle," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 23(2), pages 239-54, July. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Ferber, Robert, et al, 1969. "Validation of a National Survey of Consumer Financial Characteristics: Savings Accounts," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 51(4), pages 436-44, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. Loury, Glenn C, 1981. "Intergenerational Transfers and the Distribution of Earnings," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 49(4), pages 843-67, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  6. King, M A & Dicks-Mireaux, L-D L, 1982. "Asset Holdings and the Life-Cycle," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 92(366), pages 247-67, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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(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. Mervyn A. King & Jonathan I. Leape, 1987. "Asset Accumulation, Information, and the Life Cycle," NBER Working Papers 2392, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  2. Hugo Benítez-Silva, 2003. "Labor Supply Flexibility and Portfolio Choice: An Empirical Analysis," Working Papers wp056, University of Michigan, Michigan Retirement Research Center. [Downloadable!]
  3. Hamish Low, 2005. "Self-Insurance in a Life-Cycle Model of Labor Supply and Savings," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 8(4), pages 945-975, October. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Hugo Benitez-Silva, 2000. "A Dynamic Model Of Labor Supply, Consumption/Saving, And Annuity Decisions Under Uncertainty," Computing in Economics and Finance 2000 128, Society for Computational Economics. [Downloadable!]
  5. B. Douglas Bernheim, 1987. "Social Security Benefits: An Empirical Study of Expectations and Realizations," NBER Working Papers 2257, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  6. Bruér, Mattias, 2002. "Can Demography Improve Inflation Forecasts? The Case of Sweden," Working Paper Series 2002:4, Uppsala University, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
  7. William M. Gentry & R. Glenn Hubbard, 2000. "Entrepreneurship and Household Saving," NBER Working Papers 7894, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  8. Impavido, Gregorio & Thorburn, Craig & Wadsworth, Mike, 2004. "A conceptual framework for retirement products : Risk sharing arrangements between providers and retirees," Policy Research Working Paper Series 3208, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
  9. C. Lee, 1998. "Life Cycle Savings in the United States, 1900-1990," CPE working papers 0014, University of Chicago - Centre for Population Economics. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  10. Laurence J. Kotlikoff, 1989. "Intergenerational Transfers and Savings," NBER Working Papers 2237, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  11. B. Douglas Bernheim, 1984. "Life Cycle Annuity Valuation," NBER Working Papers 1511, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  12. Joseph G. Altonji & Fumio Hayashi & Laurence J. Kotlikoff, 1993. "Is the Extended Family Altruistically Linked? Direct Tests Using Micro Data," NBER Working Papers 3046, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  13. Hugo Benitez-Silva, . "A Dynamic Model of Labor Supply, Consumption/Saving, and Annuity Decisions under Uncertainty," Department of Economics Working Papers 00-06, SUNY-Stony Brook, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
  14. Richard Disney & Paul Johnson & Gary Stears, 1998. "Asset wealth and asset decumulation among households in the Retirement Survey," Fiscal Studies, Institute for Fiscal Studies, vol. 19(2), pages 153-174, May. [Downloadable!]
  15. Hugo Benitez-Silva, 2000. "A Joint Model of Labor Supply and Consumption Decisions Under Uncertainty," Econometric Society World Congress 2000 Contributed Papers 0196, Econometric Society. [Downloadable!]
  16. Martin S. Eichenbaum & Dan S. Peled, 1987. "Capital Accumulation and Annuities in an Adverse Selection Economy," NBER Working Papers 2046, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  17. Paivi Kankaanranta, 2006. "Consumption Over the Life Cycle: Theory and Empirical Regularities," Research Reports 118, University of Turku, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
  18. Robin Boadway & David Wildasin, 1994. "Taxation and savings: a survey," Fiscal Studies, Institute for Fiscal Studies, vol. 15(3), pages 19-63, August. [Downloadable!]
  19. Laurence J. Kotlikoff & Lawrence H. Summers, 1988. "The Contribution of Intergenerational Transfers to Total Wealth: A Reply," NBER Working Papers 1827, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  20. Michael D. Hurd, 1987. "The Marginal Value of Social Security," NBER Working Papers 2411, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  21. Päivi Kankaanranta, 2006. "Consumption Over the Life Cycle: A Selected Literature Review," Discussion Papers 7, Aboa Centre for Economics. [Downloadable!]
  22. Hugo Benítez-Silva, 2003. "The Annuity Puzzle Revisited," Working Papers wp055, University of Michigan, Michigan Retirement Research Center. [Downloadable!]
  23. James H. Stock & David A. Wise, 1988. "Pensions, The Option Value of Work, and Retirement," NBER Working Papers 2686, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
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