Disentangling the Importance of the Precautionary Saving Mode

64 Pages Posted: 22 Nov 2004 Last revised: 3 Apr 2022

See all articles by Arthur B. Kennickell

Arthur B. Kennickell

Federal Reserve Board - Department of Research & Statistics

Annamaria Lusardi

Stanford University - Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research

Multiple version iconThere are 3 versions of this paper

Date Written: November 2004

Abstract

We assess the importance of the precautionary saving motive by relying on a direct question about precautionary wealth from the 1995 and 1998 waves of the Survey of Consumer Finances. In this survey, a new question has been designed to elicit the amount of desired precautionary wealth. This allows us to bound the amount of precautionary accumulation and to overcome many of the problems of previous works on this topic. We find that a precautionary saving motive exists and affects virtually every type of household. Even though this motive does not give rise to large amounts of wealth for young and middle-age households, it is particularly important for two groups: older households and business owners. Overall, we provide strong evidence that we need to take the precautionary saving motive into account when modeling saving behavior.

Suggested Citation

Kennickell, Arthur B. and Lusardi, Annamaria, Disentangling the Importance of the Precautionary Saving Mode (November 2004). NBER Working Paper No. w10888, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=618570

Arthur B. Kennickell

Federal Reserve Board - Department of Research & Statistics ( email )

20th & C. St., N.W.
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Annamaria Lusardi (Contact Author)

Stanford University - Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research ( email )

366 Galvez Street
John A. and Cynthia Fry Gunn Building
Stanford, CA CA 94305
United States

HOME PAGE: http://siepr.stanford.edu/people/annamaria-lusardi

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