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Do sustainably managed pension savings foster sustainable investments? Evidence from a field experiment

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  • Meyer, Julia

Abstract

Pension funds increasingly consider sustainability issues in their asset allocation, and, in general, beneficiaries have been shown to approve of this shift in their pension savings. We assess the prevalence of spillover effects once beneficiaries learn about the sustainability orientation of their pension assets using beneficiaries of a Swiss-based pension fund (n=573). Our results suggest a strong priming effect, with participants investing significantly more in a sustainable investment option after being made aware of the general importance of sustainability. However, when we additionally inform them that their pension fund pursues a distinct sustainable investment strategy, allocations to the sustainable option decrease to levels of a control group without additional information available. This finding indicates that explicitly communicating the sustainability strategy of pension funds can lead to a rebound effect in the form of licensing among beneficiaries.

Suggested Citation

  • Meyer, Julia, 2024. "Do sustainably managed pension savings foster sustainable investments? Evidence from a field experiment," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 44(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:beexfi:v:44:y:2024:i:c:s2214635024000911
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jbef.2024.100976
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Sustainable investing; Willingness to pay; Priming; Licensing;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D14 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Household Saving; Personal Finance
    • G11 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Portfolio Choice; Investment Decisions
    • G41 - Financial Economics - - Behavioral Finance - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making in Financial Markets
    • J32 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Nonwage Labor Costs and Benefits; Retirement Plans; Private Pensions
    • Q56 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environment and Development; Environment and Trade; Sustainability; Environmental Accounts and Accounting; Environmental Equity; Population Growth

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