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Centre for Policy on Ageing | |
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| An assessment of the wealth holdings of recent widows | | Author(s) | Cathleen D Zick, Karen Holden |
| Journal title | Journals of Gerontology: Series B, Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, vol 55B, no 2, March 2000 |
| Pages | pp S90-S97 |
| Keywords | Economic status [elderly] ; Assets [elderly] ; Widows ; Older women ; Marital status ; Evaluation ; United States of America. |
| Annotation | Data from the US Survey of Income and Program Participants (SIPP) are used to investigate the amount and composition of wealth held by four different groups: always married women, about-to-be widowed women, recent widows, and long-standing widows. Regression analyses assess the impact of group membership on wealth holding, controlling for other socio-demographic factors, and annuity calculations assess the potential for wealth to augment income. About-to-be-widowed women have fewer assets than intact couples, and there is a further decline in assets at the time of husbands' deaths and in the ensuing period. Estimates of the annuity value of widows' wealth show that its liquidation would do little to improve the economic situation of the poorest widows. These findings confirm what is known about income changes that surround the death of a spouse. More research is needed on the relationship between wealth holdings and mortality, as well as the roles that health care costs, life insurance and bequests may play in altering widows' wealth. (RH). |
| Accession Number | CPA-000825218 A |
| Classmark | F:W: JD: SP: BD: SLM: 4C: 7T |
Data © Centre for Policy on Ageing |
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| ...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing. |
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