Framing Effects and Expected Social Security Claiming Behavior
50 Pages Posted: 9 May 2011 Last revised: 1 Jul 2024
There are 2 versions of this paper
Framing Effects and Expected Social Security Claiming Behavior
Date Written: May 2011
Abstract
Eligible participants in the U.S. Social Security system may claim benefits anytime from age 62-70, with benefit levels actuarially adjusted based on the claiming age. This paper shows that individual intentions with regard to Social Security claiming ages are sensitive to how the early versus late claiming decision is framed. Using an experimental design, we find that the use of a "break-even analysis" has the very strong effect of encouraging individuals to claim early. We also show that individuals are more likely to report they will delay claiming when later claiming is framed as a gain, and when the information provides an anchoring point at older, rather than younger, ages. Moreover, females, individuals with credit card debt, and workers with lower expected benefits are more strongly influenced by framing. We conclude that some individuals may not make fully rational optimizing choices when it comes to choosing a claiming date.
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation
Do you have a job opening that you would like to promote on SSRN?
Recommended Papers
-
Framing Social Security Reform: Behavioral Responses to Changes in the Full Retirement Age
By Luc Behaghel and David M. Blau
-
Framing Social Security Reform: Behavioral Responses to Changes in the Full Retirement Age
By Luc Behaghel and David M. Blau
-
Social Norms, Rules of Thumb, and Retirement: Evidence for Rationality in Retirement Planning
-
Labor Market Rigidities and the Employment Behavior of Older Workers
By David M. Blau and Tetyana Shvydko
-
Framing Effects and Expected Social Security Claiming Behavior
By Jeffrey R. Brown, Arie Kapteyn, ...
-
Saving Shortfalls and Delayed Retirement
By Andrew Au, Olivia S. Mitchell, ...
-
By Wojciech Kopczuk and Jae Song