Retirement planning

Data from the 1989 Survey of Consumer Finance were used to examine the effect of sociodemographic, human capital, work related, and objective variables on perceived adequacy of retirement income of preretirees. A multivariate probit analysis showed that younger respondents, whites, those with incomes between $10,000 and $19,999, females, and self-employed were less likely to perceive their future retirement income to be adequate than otherwise similar households. When subjective variables were added to the analysis, planning to save within 5 years was positively related to preretirees' perception of having adequate retirement income.

To evaluate the effects of the economic downturn on adult reconstruction surgery in the United States, a survey of the American Association of Hip and Knee Surgeons (AAHKS) membership was conducted. The survey evaluated surgical and patient volume, practice type, hospital relationship, total joint arthroplasty cost control, employee staffing, potential impact of Medicare reimbursement decreases, attitudes toward health care reform options and retirement planning. A surgical volume decrease was reported by 30.4%. An outpatient visit decrease was reported by 29.3%. A mean loss of 29.9% of retirement savings was reported. The planned retirement age increased to 65.3 years from 64.05 years. If Medicare surgeon reimbursement were to decrease up to 20%, 49% to 57% of AAHKS surgeons would be unable to provide care for Medicare patients, resulting in an unmet need of 92,650 to 160,818 total joint arthroplasty procedures among AAHKS surgeons alone. Decreases in funding for surgeons and inadequate support for subspecialty training will likely impact access and quality for Americans seeking adult reconstruction surgery.

This study develops a framework that can be used to examine the retirement savings decision. Using Retirement Confidence Survey data (N = 751), this analysis determined that respondents with higher education levels, higher income, a smaller household size, and favorable financial attitudes tend to currently have a retirement savings program in place. Those who are exposed to workplace financial education are more likely to have a retirement savings program and having a retirement savings program related positively to retirement confidence.

This research examined the influence of delay and anticipated health and enjoyment on the amount of retirement savings sacrificed for early retirement. In addition to testing and supporting predictions that willingness to sacrifice retirement savings would be less with shorter ...

Objectives. To examine personal financial management among residents to answer three research questions: do residents make reasonable financial choices; why do some residents not save; and what steps can be taken to improve residents' personal financial decisions. Methods. Portions of the Federal Reserve Board's Survey of Consumer Finances were modified and piloted to elicit demographic, expense, saving, and income data. The final questionnaire was completed by 151 urology residents at 20 programs. Results. Comparing residents with the general population in the same age and income categories, the median debt/household income ratio was 2.38 versus 0.64. Residents had greater educational debt, greater noneducational debt, and lower savings. Resident participation in retirement accounts was 100% at institutions with employer-matching 401k or 403b plans, 63% at institutions with nonmatching 401k or 403b plans, and 48% at institutions without retirement plans for residents (P ϭ 0.002). Fifty-nine percent of residents budgeted expenses, 27% had cash balances below $1000, 51% had paid interest charges on credit cards within the previous year, and 12% maintained unpaid credit card balances greater than $10,000. The median resident income was $38,400. Conclusions. A significant minority of residents appear not to make reasonable financial choices. Some residents save little because of a failure to budget, indebtedness, high projected income growth, or insufficient attention to personal financial management. Residents save more when they are eligible for tax-deferred retirement plans, particularly when their institution matches their contributions. Many residents would benefit from instruction concerning prudent financial management.

• This paper broadens the perspective on sustainable distributions by expanding into three dimensions, introducing transitory states as well as all those states existing simultaneously. • Withdrawal rates alone do not tell a complete sustainable distribution story; withdrawal rates are time dependent. • The Probability of Failure (POF), a time independent variable, is more useful for true comparison of withdrawal rates over any time period or asset allocation. • Comparison of POF surfaces, and their shift between strategies, illustrates how effective one strategy is as compared to another. • The methodology presented provides an ability to evaluate sustainable withdrawal rates and exposure to sequence risk together.

The purpose of this study is to explore the extent to which individuals' knowledge of retirement planning, future time perspective, and financial risk tolerance influence retirement saving practices. A total of 270 young working adults participated in the study. Regression analyses reveal that each of the three variables is predictive of saving practices, and they interact with one another as well. From an applied perspective, the findings suggest that counseling and intervention efforts aimed at pro-moting retirement saving should differentially target individuals on the basis of these three psycho-logical dimensions.

There is ample empirical evidence documenting widespread financial illiteracy and limited pension knowledge. At the same time, the distribution of wealth is widely dispersed and many workers arrive on the verge of retirement with few or no personal assets. In this paper, we investigate the relationship between financial literacy and household net worth, relying on comprehensive measures of financial knowledge designed for a special module of the DNB (De Nederlandsche Bank) Household Survey. Our findings provide evidence of a strong positive association between financial literacy and net worth, even after controlling for many determinants of wealth. Moreover, we discuss two channels through which financial literacy might facilitate wealth accumulation. First, financial knowledge increases the likelihood of investing in the stock market, allowing individuals to benefit from the equity premium. Second, financial literacy is positively related to retirement planning, and the development of a savings plan has been shown to boost wealth. Overall, financial literacy, both directly and indirectly, is found to have a strong link to household wealth.

The complexity of financial decisions households are faced with has increased to unprecedented levels. At the same time, recent research documents large differences in economic knowledge among households and indicates that household financial skills may be inadequate to cope with the increasing responsibility for making retirement decisions. In this paper, we examine the relationship between financial knowledge and retirement planning in the Netherlands. For this purpose, we have designed a customized module for the DNB (De Nederlandsche Bank) Household Survey. We identify a strong and positive association between financial knowledge and retirement planning. Using information on economics education when young, we show that the nexus of causality goes from literacy to planning rather than the other way around.

Little is known about the psychological mechanisms that underlie financial planning for retirement. Most studies of financial planning and investing have used demographic indicators (e.g., age, gender, income) to predict individual differences in saving. In the present study, a model of planning is tested in which psychological indicators (future time perspective, retirement goal clarity, and self-rated financial knowledge) are posited to mediate the relationship between demographic indicators and saving behaviors. Path-analytic techniques were used to test the model, based on data from 265 middle-aged working adults. Analyses revealed substantial support for the role of psychological factors in the retirement planning process. Findings have theoretical implications for the development of psychologically based models of planning, as well as applied implications for those who seek to understand the psychomotivational forces that underlie tendencies to plan and save.

Excel and VBA example of the 'Perfect Withdrawal Rate (PWR) method as per Suarez, E.D., Suarez, A. and Walz D.T., (2015).

'Based on the Paper Developing a Measure of Sequence Risk by Andrew Clare et al - 'The Perfect Withdrawal Amount: A Methodology for Creating Retirement Account Distribution Strategies, Trinity University Working Paper.

This thesis provides empirical evidence on financial skills and the relation with household financial decision-making based upon specially designed questions for the DNB Household Survey (DHS). The majority of the respondents has some grasp of concepts such as interest compounding, inflation, and the time value of money. However, very few go beyond these basic concepts; many households do not know

Realistic investment forecasts are essential to financial advisory. While it may be challenging to accurately estimate the future worth of an investment portfolio, but the awareness about the range of possible risk and returns is required to be able to take well informed decisions. Investment returns are directly related to investment risk. In the investing world all financial assets have some degree of uncertainty in their future value. One cannot estimate how much the investment portfolio might be worth when it is desired. But when you know about the range of possible risk and returns, you're in a better position to take well informed decision for the future. Monte Carlo simulation provides a powerful way to provide a better understanding of the range of possible outcomes when the future values of the portfolio are uncertain. In the context of investing, modern portfolio optimization model is used to create efficient investment strategies with the objective to provide highest expected return for a desired level of risk. Please note that modern portfolio theory is not part of the discussion in this paper.

We present new evidence on financial literacy and retirement preparation in the Netherlands based on two surveys conducted before and after the onset of the financial crisis. We document that while financial knowledge did not increase from 2005 to 2010, significantly more individuals planned for their retirement in 2010. At the same time, employees' expectations about the level of their pension income are high compared to what retirement plans may realistically provide. However, financially knowledgeable employees report lower expected replacement rates and acknowledge higher levels of uncertainty. Moreover using instrumental variables estimates for financial knowledge, we find a positive effect of financial literacy on retirement preparation. Employing the panel feature of our dataset, we show that financial knowledge has a causal impact on retirement planning. Our findings suggest that the formation of pension expectations might be an important mechanism contributing to the impact of financial literacy on planning.

The shift towards defined contribution schemes is forcing employees to take personal responsibility for securing their future through intentional retirement savings. Financial behavior may have a significant bearing on whether employees meet their contributory retirement obligations while avoiding financial distress. Utilising a cross-sectional research design and data from pension scheme members in Kenya, the study evaluates the interaction of self-control bias. The binary logistic regression results showed that financially disciplined individuals are 1.634 times more likely to plan comprehensively for their retirement, while the interaction results suggest that individuals with self-control bias are 0.502 times less likely to be comprehensive retirement planners even if they are already financially disciplined. The findings imply that financial discipline coupled with selfcontrol is necessary for retirement planning. The use of behavioral change interventions is recommended in financial education initiatives in order to inculcate both desirable financial behavior and self-control attributes in planning for retirement.

This study explored the psychological mechanisms that underlie the retirement planning and saving tendencies of Dutch and American workers. Participants were 988 Dutch and 429 Americans, 25-64 years of age. Analyses were designed to: (a) examine the extent to which structural variables were related to planning tendencies, and (b) develop culture-specific path analysis models to identify the mechanisms that underlie perceived financial preparedness for retirement. Findings revealed striking differences across countries not only among structural variables predictive of key psychological and retirement planning constructs, but also in the robustness of the path models. These findings suggest policy analysts should take into account both individual and cultural differences in the psychological predispositions of workers when considering pension reforms that stress individual responsibility for planning and saving.

In this study, meta-analytic procedures were used to examine the relationships between retirement planning, retirement decision and their antecedent and consequences. Our review of the literature generated 341 independent samples obtained from 99 primary studies with 188,222 participants. A small effect size (ES) for antecedents of retirement planning (poor health, negative working conditions and positive attitudes toward retirement) was obtained (ranging from r=.05 to r=.19), whereas a medium ES was obtained for work involvement and job satisfaction (r=−.31 and r=−.34). Regarding retirement decision, lower effect sizes were obtained. Effect sizes for the relationships with consequences were medium for retirement planning and bridge employment (r=.28), for retirement decision-volunteer work (r=.26), and for retirement decision-retirement satisfaction (r=.26). Structural equation analysis using the pooled correlation matrix allowed us to test a more complex model. Potential moderator variables were examined, and it was found that they explained only a small percentage of variability of primary studies. Results are discussed, and theoretical and empirical implications are suggested.

Important behavioral factors such as default and framing effects are increasingly being employed to optimize decision-making in a variety of settings, including individually-directed retirement plans. Yet such approaches may have unintended "spillover" effects, as we show with regard to the introduction of lifecycle funds in U.S. 401(k) plans. As anticipated, lifecycle funds do reshape individual portfolio choices through large default and framing effects. But unexpectedly, they also create a new class of investors which holds these funds as part of more complex portfolios. Our results are directly relevant to those interested in retirement plan design and retirement security; they also highlight the importance of assessing such spillover effects in other consequential settings where behavioral economics techniques may be employed.

Purpose: Economists predict that in the coming decades an unprecedented number of American baby boomers will enter retirement lacking adequate resources. The present investigation was designed to examine the factors that influence individuals' financial preparedness for retirement. Design and Methods: A total of 230 participants each completed a multifaceted questionnaire on their own personal retirement planning practices. Structural equation modeling techniques were used to examine the relationships among individuals' personality characteristics, their financial knowledge, and financial preparedness. Results: The adopted structural model revealed that both personality constructs and financial knowledge were significant predictors of pre-retirement planning. Implications: The findings from this study have important implications for how educational and marketing efforts should be developed for individuals who are differentially prone toward saving.

In this study, meta-analytic procedures were used to examine the relationships between retirement planning, retirement decision and their antecedent and consequences. Our review of the literature generated 341 independent samples obtained from 99 primary studies with 188,222 participants. A small effect size (ES) for antecedents of retirement planning (poor health, negative working conditions and positive attitudes toward retirement) was obtained (ranging from r = .05 to r = .19), whereas a medium ES was obtained for work involvement and job satisfaction (r = −.31 and r = −.34). Regarding retirement decision, lower effect sizes were obtained. Effect sizes for the relationships with consequences were medium for retirement planning and bridge employment (r = .28), for retirement decision-volunteer work (r = .26), and for retirement decision-retirement satisfaction (r = .26). Structural equation analysis using the pooled correlation matrix allowed us to test a more complex model. Poten...

Objectives: The focus of this paper is on a cross-national comparison of elite French and Swedish athletes in terms of (a) preconditions for the athletic retirement; (b) coping and related factors; (c) perceived quality and long-term consequences of the transition. The study also examines an impact of retirement planning upon the transition process and outcomes. Design and Method: The Retirement from Sports survey [Alfermann, Stambulova, & Zemaityte (2004). Reactions to sport career termination: A cross-cultural comparison of German, Lithuanian, and Russian athletes. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 5, 61-75] translated into French/Swedish and adapted for studying athletes in corresponding countries was used. The sample was composed of 157 former international level athletes from France ðn ¼ 69Þ and Sweden ðn ¼ 88Þ, males and females, representatives of different sports. ANOVA and MANOVA were used for the data analyses. Results and Conclusion: A common pattern and two nationally specific patterns in the process of the transition to the post-career have been identified. The common pattern involved athletic retirement preconditions (e.g., retirement planning), coping and related factors. Cross-cultural differences related to reasons for termination, emotional reactions upon retirement (more positive in Swedish sample), perceived difficulty to start a new professional career, usage of emotion-focused/avoidance coping strategies (both higher in French sample), duration of the transition, current athletic identity, and professional choice/ career/life satisfaction nowadays (all higher in Swedish sample). Retirement planning, regardless of the nation, was associated with more favourable emotions and coping behaviours in the transition but was not associated with perceived quality and long-term consequences of the transition. The study showed that the

This chapter aims to present several issues facing those approaching retire mentor current retirees and their relationship to their former institution. A brief review of the higher education retirement literature provides the context to Fishman’s three-phase staff retirement Departure, Redefinition, and Re-engagement (DRR)
model. The chapter next provides a classification typology to serve as a guide for institutions to gauge interest in cultivating a continuing relationship with current and future retired staff members. The chapter concludes by listing common higher education perquisites (e.g., library access, invitations to certain campus events) to provide practical utility to higher education administrators assisting those in the retirement transition process.

Meta-analytic procedures were used to examine relationships between objective income (OI), perceived adequacy of income, and retirement and their consequences. The authors’ review of the literature generated 90 independent samples obtained from 71 primary studies with 115,129 participants, which provided 136 independent effect sizes (ESs). A high effect size (r = .37) was found for the subjective income–retirement planning relation and a medium ES (r = .29) for the OI–retirement planning relation. Regarding retirement consequences, both objective and subjective incomes were positively related to retirement adjustment indicators, with low ES for OI–life satisfaction, OI–retirement income satisfaction, and retirement satisfaction. Structural equation analysis using the pooled correlation matrix allowed testing a more complex model. Potential moderator variables were examined, and it was found that they explained only a small percentage of variability of primary studies. Results and theoretical and empirical implications are discussed.

To evaluate the effects of the economic downturn on adult reconstruction surgery in the United States, a survey of the American Association of Hip and Knee Surgeons (AAHKS) membership was conducted. The survey evaluated surgical and patient volume, practice type, hospital relationship, total joint arthroplasty cost control, employee staffing, potential impact of Medicare reimbursement decreases, attitudes toward health care reform options and retirement planning. A surgical volume decrease was reported by 30.4%. An outpatient visit decrease was reported by 29.3%. A mean loss of 29.9% of retirement savings was reported. The planned retirement age increased to 65.3 years from 64.05 years. If Medicare surgeon reimbursement were to decrease up to 20%, 49% to 57% of AAHKS surgeons would be unable to provide care for Medicare patients, resulting in an unmet need of 92,650 to 160,818 total joint arthroplasty procedures among AAHKS surgeons alone. Decreases in funding for surgeons and inadequate support for subspecialty training will likely impact access and quality for Americans seeking adult reconstruction surgery.

The primary purpose of the present study was to examine the effect of salary level, amount of leave per year, the extent of cost-sharing for health care insurance coverage, and type of retirement plan on individuals’ job choice within a United States employment context. Salary, amount of vacation time, cost of health insurance, and type of retirement plan predicted the

Most defined contribution pension plan members misunderstand asset allocation, but those with higher levels of wealth managing their own money are less likely to be confused. Younger, more-educated, higher-earning advice-receiving males with a planner mindset hold more equity. Notably, an understanding of asset allocation accentuates the impact of the key factors age, income and a planner mindset.

Retirement research has shown that planning activities are influenced by a variety of demographic and psychological variables. However, few investigations have focused on how demographic and psychological factors influence the time and effort men and women allocate to retirement preparation. In the present study, 184 individuals completed a survey designed to assess future time perspective (FTP), worry about retirement, age, and income level. Hierarchical regression techniques were used to examine how these variables influenced the amount of time men and women spent planning for and thinking about retirement. Results revealed that women spent less time thinking about retirement than men, and gender was differentially related to the factors predictive of this activity. From an applied perspective, these findings suggest that separate retirement intervention programs are warranted that meet the unique needs of working men and women.

The purpose of this qualitative study was to ascertain retirement planning by
fisher folks in Elmina and Cape Coast fishing communities in the Central Region
of Ghana. Using qualitative research designed from a phenomenological
view, 35 fisher folks were conveniently sampled for the study. These fisher folks
comprised fishermen, canoe owners and fishmongers. The semi-structured interview
guide was used to collect data from the participants and their responses
were audio-recorded, transcribed and analyzed thematically. It was revealed
from the study that most of the fisher folks regarded retirement as a period in
which a person is not able to work and this is dependent on the person’s level
of strength, age or health condition. It also came to light that retirement planning
among fisher folks is affected by factors such as the lack of labour unions
or associations, seasonal conditions, high cost of operation, illegal fishing activities,
extravagant spending among fishermen, lack of financial support and the
mechanism of demand and supply. It is therefore recommended that an extensive
public education programme on retirement planning should be implemented
for fisher folks along with the fishing communities. The government, in
consultation with the security agencies such as the police and the marine patrol
team should come up with stringent measures to deal with individuals
that engage in illegal fishing activities that pose a great threat to the livelihood
of the indigenous fishermen and the fishing business in Ghana.

This study was aimed at examining the perceived consequences of unplanned retirement among educational employees in Takoradi Technical University, Ghana. This research work employed a descriptive research approach with a sample size of 257 respondents. The study also adopted a simple random sampling technique to obtain the respondents from a stratified group of Male and female, senior members, and senior staff. The results disclosed that employees of Takoradi Technical University perceived some number of consequences such as poor living standard, housing risk, high cost of living, high dependency, and, ill-health as risks likely to affect their retirement if retirement is not properly planned. The study recommended that Takoradi Technical University should invest in pre-retirement activities for their staff before retirement. Government should put in place a policy that would compel all educational institutions to organize pre-retirement seminars for their employees to plan for their retirement.

This paper evaluates some of the key lessons of behavioral economics and finance research over the last decade for pension plan design. We divide the discussion into the natural phases of the retirement saving life cycle: accumulation, investment, and decumulation. After reviewing the lessons of behavioral finance, we conclude by outlining plan design alternatives that would be of use to plan sponsors and policymakers seeking to design more cost-effective and efficient retirement plans for the future.

The recent retirement plan debacle of the Enron employees has caused regulators and lawmakers to think about new ways to protect and help retirement plan participants. When investigating participant investment decisions, researchers have traditionally studied the retirement plan characteristics and employee characteristics. More recently, some researchers have extended the analysis to social in¯uences, such as social norms and peer affects. Others have expanded into behavioral ®nance and examined the role of various psychological biases. This paper combines and summarizes these four sets of in¯uences so that researchers and policy makers can better understand all the in¯uences affecting an employee when making retirement plan contribution and investment decisions.

This study examines contextual factors related to adult decisions to move or age in place at retirement. Using a broad range of individual community and family factors, the study addresses two primary objectives: (a) comparing those inclined to move or stay at retirement and (b) whether such decisions are more salient as individuals move closer to an actual date of retirement. Salience refers to the change in thinking about relocation, from remote thoughts to concrete decisions. The sample included adults (N = 1,285) between 40 and 65 years of age. Logistic regression of two age groups in the sample, 40-to 50-year-olds and 51-to 60-year-olds, indicated both common and differential patterns of planning based on the emerging salience of retirement. Results provide an understanding of factors associated with migration decision making and the evolving salience of thinking about migration. In addition, these findings may facilitate informed community planning.

Advancement of myopic loss aversion theory has been hamstrung by conflicting results, methodological inconsistencies, and a piecemeal approach toward understanding the key factors influencing decision problem framing. A series of controlled experiments provides a more holistic view of the variables promoting myopia. Extending the information horizon promotes broad framing, which propels risk. Evaluation frequency and decision frequency interact regardless of information horizon, supporting the notion that restricting either mechanism alleviates myopia. When conducting evaluations infrequently, neither segregating nor aggregating retrospective returns significantly alters risk preferences. Moreover, students and real retirement plan participants exhibit comparable appetites for risk, implying that both groups frame decision problems similarly. Explanations for these findings and avenues for future research are discussed.

This study explored the psychological mechanisms that underlie the retirement planning and saving tendencies of Dutch and American workers. Participants were 988 Dutch and 429 Americans, 25-64 years of age. Analyses were designed to: (a) examine the extent to which structural variables were related to planning tendencies, and (b) develop culture-specific path analysis models to identify the mechanisms that underlie perceived financial preparedness for retirement. Findings revealed striking differences across countries not only among structural variables predictive of key psychological and retirement planning constructs, but also in the robustness of the path models. These findings suggest policy analysts should take into account both individual and cultural differences in the psychological predispositions of workers when considering pension reforms that stress individual responsibility for planning and saving.

The aim of the present study was to examine the impact of professional financial experience on the relationships between financial knowledge and beliefs on financial planning for retirement (FPR) in young adults. We designed a domain-specific personal belief inventory comprising all important components involved in FPR. Financial professionals (n = 145) demonstrated greater knowledge of the financial retirement system compared with non-professionals (n = 382). The two groups, however, differed neither in objective nor self-rated general financial literacy. In non-professionals, higher financial literacy was positively linked to trust in the 2nd pension pillar, self-assessed competence in FPR, personal engagement in FPR, perceiving FPR as less emotionally loaded and FPR task as less complex. These predicted relationships were not found among professionals. Thus, professional experience in financial domain seems to bring a deeper and particularized insight into the pros and cons of the pension system, and consequently vacillates beliefs about FPR.

In this study, meta-analytic procedures were used to examine the relationships between retirement planning, retirement decision and their antecedent and consequences. Our review of the literature generated 341 independent samples obtained from 99 primary studies with 188,222 participants. A small effect size (ES) for antecedents of retirement planning (poor health, negative working conditions and positive attitudes toward retirement) was obtained (ranging from r = .05 to r = .19), whereas a medium ES was obtained for work involvement and job satisfaction (r = −.31 and r = −.34). Regarding retirement decision, lower effect sizes were obtained. Effect sizes for the relationships with consequences were medium for retirement planning and bridge employment (r = .28), for retirement decision-volunteer work (r = .26), and for retirement decision-retirement satisfaction (r = .26). Structural equation analysis using the pooled correlation matrix allowed us to test a more complex model. Poten...

The purpose of this literature review was to ascertain retirement planning by fisher folks in Ghanaian communities taking Elmina and Cape Coast fishing communities in the Central Region in perspective. This was carefully done by using mainly Secondary sources of data which were verified by using the critical inquiry approach. The fisher folks comprised of fishermen, canoe owners and fishmongers. The paper reviewed aspects pertaining to the concept of retirement, forms of retirement, determinants of retirement planning, retirement planning schemes, elements of retirement planning, challenges facing fishing communities among others. This was systematically done to bring out valid conclusions and recommendations. Theoretically, Robert Havighurst development task theory was applied to this review. The paper established that small-scale fishing in coastal ethnic communities use traditional techniques which are often but not always intensive compared to modern industrial fishing techniques. Again, the paper revealed that fisher folks in these coastal areas had limited or no knowledge about the Tier three SSNIT Pension Scheme. The paper further revealed that the fisher folks have their own traditional ways of planning towards retirement. These include financial investments with bank, investing in their children's education, acquisition of assets and opening of businesses such as running of transports and shops. It is therefore recommended that Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) should device effective measures to intensify awareness their awareness programme on the Tier three Pension Scheme especially long the fishing communities in the coastal areas of Ghana. Also, an extensive public education programme on retirement planning should be implemented for fisher folks along the fishing communities.

This study considered the extent of workers' unfamiliarity with retirement benefits, a problem that could compromise informed retirement planning. Design and Methods: Among workers in the 1992 Health and Retirement Study, we examined the frequency of "don't know" responses to question series about employer pensions, health insurance, and Social Security. Results: Eligible workers readily offered responses about the shared, public details of pension plans, but knowledge about personal pension wealth was lacking for one third of persons in defined benefit plans and for one fifth of those in defined contribution plans. Among household financial respondents, 14% did not know about health insurance continuation after retirement, and 52% could not offer an expected Social Security amount. Such nonresponse was patterned by proximity to retirement and by social and occupational factors. Implications: More than a problem of missing data, these findings argue for a theoretical reconsideration of the role of financial knowledge in retirement behavior. Ignorance of benefits is probably less a problem of disclosure than of workers' inattention to available information.