家庭金融中谜题之间的关联：来自员工福利选择的证据

摘要

Many people have difficulty making financial decisions. We show that the quality of two important decisions—health insurance and retirement saving—are positively correlated using administrative and survey data. People who choose a dominated health plan are more likely to forego employer matching funds for retirement saving than those who do not. On average, choosing a dominated plan and not contributing to supplemental retirement accounts results in over $10,000 in foregone savings over five years. Frictions in acquiring and processing information about benefits are the decisive factor in 50–75% of choices. Secondary mechanisms involve liquidity demand, financial literacy, and aversion to deductibles.