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Beliefs about the gender pension gap

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  • Schuetz, Jana

Abstract

I conduct an online survey of 3000 respondents in the United States to examine individuals’ beliefs about the gender pension gap. By including an information provision experiment in which treated respondents are informed about the size of the gender pension gap, I examine whether receiving this information causally affects respondents’ perceptions of the fairness and drivers of the gender pension gap and their support for policies aimed at reducing it. I find that most respondents underestimate the gender pension gap and that treated respondents are less likely to perceive the gender pension gap as fair. In addition, treated respondents perceive the unequal distribution of care work and gender differences in wages as more important drivers of the gap, and their demand for remedial policies such as targeted financial education increases significantly. This increase in policy demand is driven by male respondents and Republicans.

Suggested Citation

  • Schuetz, Jana, 2026. "Beliefs about the gender pension gap," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 184(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:eecrev:v:184:y:2026:i:c:s0014292125002946
    DOI: 10.1016/j.euroecorev.2025.105244
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    Cited by:

    1. Julia Peter & Jana Schuetz, 2026. "Stereotypes, Financial Literacy, and Confidence: An Information Provision Experiment," CESifo Working Paper Series 12384, CESifo.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • J26 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Retirement; Retirement Policies
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • H55 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Social Security and Public Pensions
    • C90 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - General

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