On Thursday 28 September Ron van Schie will defend his PhD thesis entitled 'lanning for retirement: Save more or retire later?'. Supervisors are Professors Bas Donkers and Benedict Dellaert (both from Erasmus School of Economics). Other members of the committee are: Dr. E.C. Brüggen (Maastricht University), Professor A.O.I. Hoffmann (Adelaide Business School), Professor O.W. Steenbeek, Erasmus School of Economics.
About Ron van Schie
Ron van Schie (Nootdorp, March 12th, 1984) obtained his Master’s degree in Economics in 2007 from the Erasmus University Rotterdam. In January 2008 he started as a PhD candidate in the department of marketing at the Erasmus School of Economics (ESE). He presented his work at several conferences (Netspar Pension Day, theme conferences and working groups). His work has been published in the Journal of Economic Psychology and appeared in the Netspar Discussion series. Since 2012 he is working as a statistical researcher at Statistics Netherlands, where he manages several (international) projects related to price and real estate statistics.
Thesis Abstract
In many developed countries collective pension plans are under pressure. As a consequence, individuals face a shift in responsibility for retirement planning from a collective level towards the individuals themselves. The increased importance of individual retirement planning calls for more research that addresses the (psychological) processes underlying individuals’ tendencies to plan for retirement. In this dissertation we do so by exploring individuals’ drivers to consider two important strategies in planning for an adequate retirement: Save more or retire later. In the first essay we combine insights from research in economics and psychology to investigate what drives individuals to consider additional savings contributions. In particular, a conceptual model is developed to explain the role of uncertainty regarding one’s savings adequacy therein. In the second essay we study individuals’ planned retirement age, and explore age-related differences in representing this decision (in terms of which goal is primary to the decision) and the resulting differential impact of a construal level intervention on individuals’ planned retirement age for different age groups. In the last essay we take into account both strategies simultaneously and explore the interrelation among individuals’ intentions to consider additional savings and when to retire. Our findings also have practical implications as they provide more insight in individual differences in retirement planning and give directions for practitioners to customize their pension communications accordingly.
Time and location
The PhD defence will take place in the Senate Hall of Erasmus University Rotterdam and will start at 11.30 hrs.
- More information
For more information about this ceremony, please contact Ronald de Groot, Communication Officer of the Erasmus School of Economics phone +31 10 408 1762 or by e-mail: rdegroot@ese.eur.nl.
Ron’s PhD research project is conducted within the Erasmus Doctoral Programme organised by Erasmus Research Institute of Management (ERIM), the joint research institute of Rotterdam School of Management (RSM) and Erasmus School of Economics (ESE) of the Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR).