Bequests as a motive for saving up for old age
Abstract
The main goal of this article is to describe the attitudes towards bequests as the motive for saving up for old age. The article reports the results of our own qualitative and quantitative research. The reasons for additional, voluntary saving up for old age, as seen in the conducted qualitative study are: creating a safety net against illnesses that often inevitably come with ageing, a wish to fulfill one’s dreams when retired, consumption smoothing during the entire lifetime, leaving a bequest, possession of savings with no particular aim and the lack of trust in the state pension system. For making voluntary savings for old age the most significant are the will to keep the current standard of life and creating a safety net against an illness. Definitely less significant is saving for the sake of it and leaving a bequest. Taking into consideration the factors contributing to gathering means for bequests, the research results indicate that most frequently several motives co-occur. Even if respondents declare a clear motive, for instance the altruistic one, they will still indicate conditions that limit the fully selfless transfer of their wealth.
Keywords:
intergenerational transfers, savings for old age, bequestsReferences
Ando, A.; Modigliani, F. (1957). Tests of the Life-Cycle Hypothesis of Saving: Comments and Suggestions. Oxford Institute of Statistics Bulletin May: 99-124.
Google Scholar
Bengtson, V. L. (2001). Beyond the Nuclear Family: The Increasing Importance of Multigenerational Bonds. Journal of Marriage and Family 63: 1-16.
Google Scholar
Bernheim, D.B.; Shleifer, A.; Summers L.H. (1985). The strategic bequest motive. Journal of Political Economy 93 (6): 1045-1076.
Google Scholar
Białowąs, S. (2013). Zachowania oszczędnościowe w polskich gospodarstwach domowych. Postawy determinanty, model. Poznań: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Ekonomicznego w Poznaniu.
Google Scholar
Kaczmarek, M.; Olejnik, I.; Springer, A. (2013). Badania jakościowe – metody i zastosowania. Warszawa: Cedewu.
Google Scholar
Kohli, M.; Kunemund, H. (2003). Intergenerational transfers in the family: what motivates giving? In: V.L. Bengtson; A. Lowenstein A. (eds) (2003). Global aging and challenges to families. New York: Aldine de Gruyter.
Google Scholar
Laferrere, A.; Wolff, F-C. (2006). Microeconomic Models of Family Transfers. In: Kolm, S-C.; Ythier, J.M. (eds.). Handbook of the economics of giving, altruism and reciprocity: applications (2006). New York: Elsevier.
Google Scholar
Michoń, P. (2012). Transfery międzypokoleniowe w rodzinie. Ruch Prawniczy, Ekonomiczny i Socjologiczny 3: 240.
Google Scholar
Olejnik, I. (2013). Postawy wobec oszczędzania na emeryturę w kontekście cyklu życia. Handel Wewnętrzny (A)2: 205-213.
Google Scholar
Solarz, J.K. (2012). Nanofinanse. Codzienność zmienia świat. Warszawa: C.H. Beck.
Google Scholar
Szukalski, P. (2001). Motywacja do przekazywania spadków w świetle współczesnych badań w krajach wysoko rozwiniętych. Ruch Prawniczy, Ekonomiczny i Socjologiczny 1-2: 189 and further.
Google Scholar
Szukalski, P. (2002). Wewnątrzrodzinne przepływy międzypokoleniowe jako kategoria analityczna. Polityka Społeczna 8: 16-20.
Google Scholar
Statistics
Downloads
License
Copyright (c) 2020 Economic and Environmental Studies
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Most read articles by the same author(s)
- Sylwester Białowąs, Iwona Olejnik, Securing old age vs. other saving goals of households , Economic and Environmental Studies: Vol. 18 No. 1 (45) (2018)
- Iwona Olejnik, Sylwester Białowąs, The Reverse Mortgage – Consumer Attitudes , Economic and Environmental Studies: Vol. 17 No. 1 (41) (2017)
