Claudio Daminato and Irina Gemmo Abstract: Sound retirement planning requires individuals to have precise beliefs about their survival chances. Based on an online survey experiment administered to a representative sample of the US population, we provide first evidence of the patterns of individuals’ uncertainty about their survival probabilities, i.e., survival ambiguity, over the life-cycle. To …

Determinants and Life-Cycle Effects of Survival Ambiguity Read More »

Laura Hospido, Nagore Iriberri, and Margarita Machelett Abstract: Women are consistently more likely to respond ”I do not know” (IDK) to financial questions, a behavior that might reflect confidence, risk attitudes or other tendencies rather than knowledge gaps. Using a randomized experiment with 6,000 adults in Spain, we test whether this behavioral pattern can be …

Gender Gaps in Financial Literacy: A Multi-Arm RCT to Break the Response Bias in Surveys Read More »

Veronica Frisancho, Antonella García, Edgar Ventura, and Juan Carlos Chong Abstract: This study experimentally examines the long-term effects of school-based financial education, analyzing data from nearly 60,000 individuals in Peru, seven years postintervention. Treated students increased their total debt by 7.2% and average loan size by 7.8%, shifting from revolving to non-revolving credit. Borrowing terms …

Lasting Lessons: The Long-Term Impacts of School-Based Financial Education Read More »

Luis Oberrauch, Tim Kaiser, and Annamaria Lusardi Abstract: Since 2012, the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), an initiative of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), conducted triennial tests to evaluate the financial literacy of 15-year-old students in various countries. These data provide an opportunity to study the determinants of financial literacy among …

Assessing Financial Literacy Among the Young Read More »

Tim Kaiser and Annamaria Lusardi Abstract: This article provides a concise narrative overview of the rapidly growing empirical literature on financial literacy and financial education. We first discuss stylized facts on the demographic correlates of financial literacy. We next cover the evidence on the effects of financial literacy on financial behaviors and outcomes. Finally, we …

Financial Literacy and Financial Education: An Overview Read More »

Irina Gemmo, Pierre-Carl Michaud, and Olivia S. Mitchell Abstract: To examine how financial education affects financial outcomes, one must evaluate whether and how sample selection may bias inferences regarding program impacts. Our incentivized experiment reveals how such selection influences estimated financial education effects. The more financially literate and those expecting higher gains pay more to …

Selection into Financial Education and Effects on Portfolio Choice Read More »

Giovanni Gallo and Alessia Sconti Abstract: Financial vulnerability is a concern of policymakers around the world. The Covid-19 pandemic elevated the financial fragility of households globally, particularly among the most vulnerable populations, and rising inflation is adding a new strain. This paper looks at Italy in examining how a marginal change in a household’s financial …

Could Financial Education Be a Universal Social Policy? A Simulation of Potential Influences on Inequality Levels Read More »

Robert L. Clark Abstract: While there have been numerous studies illustrating the rather low level of financial knowledge of Americans, there have been only a few efforts to examine the effectiveness of employer-provided programs in enhancing financial literacy and the ability of these programs to modify worker retirement and saving decisions. In this paper, I …

Effectiveness of Employer-Provided Financial Education Programs Read More »

Paul Gerrans, Sherin Babu Abisekaraj, and Zhangxin (Frank) Liu Abstract: The `Fear of Missing Out’ or FoMO has become an accepted motivator of behaviours extending from the purchase of limited-edition sneaker brands to social media use and cryptocurrency investment. As a motivator of individual financial behaviours, such as cryptocurrency and stock investment, it is unclear …

The Fear of Missing Out on Cryptocurrency and Stock Investments: Direct and Indirect Effects of Financial Literacy and Risk Tolerance Read More »

Ismael Choinière Crèvecoeur and Pierre-Carl Michaud Abstract: Few retirees use reverse mortgages. In this paper, we investigate how financial literacy and prior knowledge of the product influence take-up by conducting a stated-preference experiment. We exogenously manipulate characteristics of reverse mortgages to tease out how consumers value them and investigate differences by financial literacy and prior …

Reverse Mortgages and Financial Literacy Read More »