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Pension Confusion, Uncertainty and Trust in Scotland: An Empirical Analysis

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 May 2014

ROB WEBB ,
DUNCAN WATSON ,
PATRICK RING  and
CORMAC BRYCE
ROB WEBB*
Affiliation:
Centre for Risk, Banking and Financial Services, Nottingham University Business School, Jubilee Campus, Wollaton Road, NG8 1BB.
DUNCAN WATSON
Affiliation:
School of Economics, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, NR4 7TJ email: [email protected]
PATRICK RING
Affiliation:
Department of Law, Economics, Accountancy and Risk, Glasgow Caledonian University, Cowcaddens Road, Glasgow G4 0BA email: [email protected]
CORMAC BRYCE
Affiliation:
Centre for Risk, Banking and Financial Services, Nottingham University Business School, Jubilee Campus, Wollaton Road, NG8 1BB email: [email protected]
*
email: [email protected]
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Abstract

In the context of the new automatic enrolment requirements for all eligible employees to make pension provision for their employees, and the importance of trust in pension provision, this article utilises data from the Scottish Social Attitudes Survey, which, in its 2005 wave, asked correspondents specific questions regarding pension provision. We integrate two different empirical approaches in order to achieve a more robust understanding of pension confusion in Scotland. We find that pension confusion is dominated by pension uncertainty and myopia, but these may be reduced for those working in the financial sector. We consider the implications of these findings for the relationship of trust between employers and their employees, as well as for trust in government pension policy more generally.

Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Social Policy , Volume 43 , Issue 3 , July 2014 , pp. 595 - 613
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2014 

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