Microsoft Word Ed Horwitz Post Dissertation Fina docx

Chapter 4 - Paper Three: The Effects of Financial Literacy on 
Retirement Preparedness Best Practice Behaviors 
 Introduction 
 
Responsibility for securing an adequate retirement is clearly shifting to individuals, as a 
result of changing employer retirement plans (Lusardi, 2008; Martin, 2007; van Rooij, Lusardi, 
& Alessie, 2011). As Americans are being asked to manage more of their personal and 
retirement finances, the need for financial literacy is becoming even greater (Lusardi, 2008; 
Martin, 2007). A vast amount of empirical research has focused on understanding the 
relationship between financial literacy and financial decision making (Hogarth, Beverly, & 
Hilgert, 2003; Huston, 2010; Martin, 2007; Remund, 2010). Much of this previous research has 
explored the associations between literacy and behavior by assessing knowledge and actions. 
The research in this study will investigate how financial literacy is related to positive financial 
behaviors, specifically retirement preparedness best practice behaviors, using nationally 
collected data from the U.S.