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Consumer Behavior in the United States: Implications for Social Security Reform
Author(s) -
Evans Paul
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
economic inquiry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.823
H-Index - 72
eISSN - 1465-7295
pISSN - 0095-2583
DOI - 10.1093/ei/39.4.568
Subject(s) - economics , social security , per capita , consumption (sociology) , asset (computer security) , social capital , stock (firearms) , autonomous consumption , growth model , capital accumulation , econometrics , labour economics , monetary economics , microeconomics , macroeconomics , market economy , aggregate expenditure , mechanical engineering , profit (economics) , population , social science , demography , computer security , sociology , computer science , engineering
This article shows theoretically and empirically that an aggregate Euler equation relates the growth rate of per capita consumption to the real interest rate, the ratio of private wealth plus asset income to consumption, and the ratio of social security wealth to consumption. Using the estimated Euler equation, the paper then calculates the steady‐state effects of social security reform. Reforms that reduce the ratio of social security wealth to consumption are found to shift the balanced growth paths for the capital stock, output, and consumption upward appreciably.