The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) recently announced the release of new research on the delivery of financial literacy information in Canada.
An excerpt:
“It is estimated that the average Canadian currently approaching retirement age can expect to live until the age of 86. People who retire at the age of 65, will have to live on their pensions and savings for an average of 21 years, and possibly longer. With the decline in coverage of workers through employer-sponsored pension plans, Canadians face an increasing personal responsibility to plan for their own retirement. In spite of this, one in three Canadian adults is not financially preparing for retirement…”
Key points include:
- High knowledge alone is not enough to lead to financially desirable behaviours.
- Confidence seems to direct seniors and near-seniors with low knowledge toward financially desirable behaviours in several key domains.
- Overconfidence can lead seniors and near-seniors with high knowledge to make poorer financial decisions in some areas.
- Under-confident seniors and near-seniors are at a higher risk of poor financial outcomes.
The Role of Financial Literacy in Financial Decisions and Retirement Preparedness among Seniors and Near-Seniors
Read the Executive Summary.
The Link between Financial Confidence and Financial Outcomes among Working-Aged Canadians
Read the Executive Summary.