Paola Bongini and Doriana Cucinelli
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the main predictors of university students’ intention to invest in a pension fund: an understanding of how young people perceive…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the main predictors of university students’ intention to invest in a pension fund: an understanding of how young people perceive retirement planning is relevant for its policy implications.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors apply the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) proposed by Ajzen (1985) which explains how human behaviour is guided, and provides a framework to explore the underlying beliefs that affect one’s behaviours.
Findings
The evidence on a sample of Italian university students highlights that the TPB predictors, pension knowledge, money management and the highest level of financial literacy, positively influence their intention to invest in a pension fund.
Research limitations/implications
Although the authors are aware of the limitations of the analysis (limited to a specific country and to a specific financial product), the authors believe that the study has the merit of offering a number of ideas for further research. In fact, there are few contributions in the literature that identify the intention of young people to save for retirement. The study sheds light on this important issue. However, because it is limited to Italian university students, its findings cannot be generalised.
Practical implications
The study can be used by regulators, financial educators, counsellors and public institutions to increase the propensity of young people to plan for their future and guide them towards attitudes and behaviours most likely to increase their savings for retirement.
Social implications
The evidence suggests that regulators, institutions and educators should improve the information that is provided to families first and to the younger generations – at school, for instance – about the functioning of the pension system. The survey’s findings emphasise that university students are generally unaware of the many reforms to the system while believing that their state pensions will be sufficient to maintain a retirement standard of living that is the same as the standard of living achieved during their working lives.
Originality/value
In the authors’ knowledge, there are not studies that focus on the youngs’ intention to invest in a pension fund. The authors believe that millennials are the most hitted by the Fornero’s reform and understand which predictors affect this intention can allow to drive the decision in investing in these important financial tools.
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Alessandro Carretta, Doriana Cucinelli, Lucrezia Fattobene, Lucia Leonelli and Paola Schwizer
This study aims to investigate the drivers of bank automation system performance expectancy compared to that of bank employees. The purpose is to shed light on the role played by…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to investigate the drivers of bank automation system performance expectancy compared to that of bank employees. The purpose is to shed light on the role played by consumers' cognitive schema on automation that is the perfect automation schema (PAS).
Design/methodology/approach
A survey was administered to about 500 Italian subjects to measure their PAS; financial knowledge, anxiety, and security; and sociodemographic and socioeconomic variables. Ordered probit regressions and an instrumental variable two-stage least squares regression are run.
Findings
The analyses reveal that cognitive schemas play a crucial role in consumer expectations in banking. Individuals with stronger PAS tend to have more positive expectations about bank automation performance compared to employee performance. Financial anxiety and knowledge positively affect bank automation performance expectancy while women, older people, and financially insecure subjects have poor expectations of automated banking systems.
Originality/value
This study extends the understanding of key consumer characteristics that affect bank automation performance expectancy compared to that of bank employees in services delivery in the Italian context. Moreover, it provides useful results for researchers, practitioners, banking institutions, and regulators.