Unilateral Divorce Laws (UDLs) allow people to obtain divorce without the consent of their spouse. Using the staggered introduction of UDLs across European countries, we show that households exposed to UDLs for a longer period of time accumulate more savings. This effect holds for both financial and total wealth and is stronger at higher quantiles of the wealth distribution. Consistent with a precautionary motive for savings, we also find that exposure to UDLs increases female labour supply, numeracy, trust in others and dispositional optimism.

The ant or the grasshopper? The long-term consequences of Unilateral Divorce Laws on savings of European households / V. Angelini, M. Bertoni, L. Stella, C.T. Weiss. - In: EUROPEAN ECONOMIC REVIEW. - ISSN 0014-2921. - 119:(2019), pp. 97-113. [10.1016/j.euroecorev.2019.07.002]

The ant or the grasshopper? The long-term consequences of Unilateral Divorce Laws on savings of European households

L. Stella
Penultimo
;
2019

Abstract

Unilateral Divorce Laws (UDLs) allow people to obtain divorce without the consent of their spouse. Using the staggered introduction of UDLs across European countries, we show that households exposed to UDLs for a longer period of time accumulate more savings. This effect holds for both financial and total wealth and is stronger at higher quantiles of the wealth distribution. Consistent with a precautionary motive for savings, we also find that exposure to UDLs increases female labour supply, numeracy, trust in others and dispositional optimism.
Divorce risk; Europe; Household savings
Settore ECON-02/A - Politica economica
2019
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/2434/1107857
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