The effect of age on willingness to take risks

a column by Thomas Dohmen, Armin Falk, Bart Golsteyn, David Huffman and Uwe Sunde for VOX: CVEPR&rsquo's Policy Portal

Many developed countries have ageing populations, with potentially major economic, political, and social consequences in the near future. Using Dutch and German panel data to control for cohort and period effects, this column investigates the relationship between age and risk attitudes. The results suggest that willingness to take risks declines with age, implying that societies may become more risk-averse as their population ages.

Continue reading

---