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A Test of the Full Insurance Hypothesis: The Case of Japan

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  • Kohara, Miki
  • Ohtake, Fumio
  • Saito, Makoto

Abstract

Exploiting the panel data structure of the Family Income and Expenditure Survey, compiled from 1989 to 1997 by the Japanese Bureau of Statistics, this paper explores how effectively idiosyncratic shocks are shared among consumers in Japan. Tests are conducted for the total consumption, together with each category of consumption expenditures. In addition, the empirical analysis of the paper accounts for the disaster shock caused by the Hyogo Earthquake that took place in January 1995. While the overall empirical results indicate that the full insurance hypothesis is strongly rejected, they suggest that idiosyncratic shocks are insured at least partially. With respect to the effect of the earthquake shock, the residents in the earthquake area indeed bore more shocks than those in other regions. The paper also points out that the extent of risk-sharing among households in Japan is fairly similar to that in the US.
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Suggested Citation

  • Kohara, Miki & Ohtake, Fumio & Saito, Makoto, 2002. "A Test of the Full Insurance Hypothesis: The Case of Japan," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 16(3), pages 335-352, September.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:jjieco:v:16:y:2002:i:3:p:335-352
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. HORI Masahiro & SHIMIZUTANI Satoshi, 2002. "Micro Data Studies on Japanese Household Consumption," ESRI Discussion paper series 015, Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI).
    2. Yamada, Tomoaki, 2012. "Income risk, macroeconomic and demographic change, and economic inequality in Japan," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 36(1), pages 63-84.
    3. Yamada, Tomoaki, 2014. "A note on risk sharing against idiosyncratic shocks and geographic mobility in Japan," MPRA Paper 54886, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. Yasuyuki Sawada & Satoshi Shimizutani, 2005. "Are People Insured Against Natural Disasters? Evidence from the Great Hanshin-Awaji (Kobe) Earthquake in 1995," CIRJE F-Series CIRJE-F-314, CIRJE, Faculty of Economics, University of Tokyo.
    5. Yasuyuki Sawada & Satoshi Shimizutani, 2007. "Consumption insurance against natural disasters: evidence from the Great Hanshin-Awaji (Kobe) earthquake," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 14(4), pages 303-306.
    6. Chiaki Hara, 2006. "Heterogeneous Risk Attitudes In A Continuous‐Time Model," The Japanese Economic Review, Japanese Economic Association, vol. 57(3), pages 377-405, September.
    7. Abe, Naohito & Yamada, Tomoaki, 2009. "Nonlinear income variance profiles and consumption inequality over the life cycle," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 23(3), pages 344-366, September.
    8. Kota Ogasawara, 2018. "Consumption smoothing in the working-class households of interwar Japan," Papers 1807.05737, arXiv.org, revised Feb 2024.
    9. SAWADA Yasuyuki & SHIMIZUTANI Satoshi, 2004. "How Do People Cope With Natural Disasters? Evidence from the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake," ESRI Discussion paper series 101, Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI).

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