Kennickell, Starr-McCluer & Sundén, 1997

Kennickell, A. B., Starr-McCluer, M. & Sundén, A. E. (1997). Saving and financial planning: Some findings from a focus
group Financial Counseling and Planning, 8 (1), 1-8.


Saving And Financial Planning: Some Findings From A Focus
Group


Arthur B. Kennickell,(1) Martha Starr-McCluer(2) and Annika E. Sundén(3)

This paper summarizes the results of a focus group on saving and financial planning. The group
consisted of eight individuals with relatively high income and wealth. The savings behavior of such
people is of interest partly due to their large contribution to total personal saving. The participants
expressed concerns about how their circumstances will change as they age, and about uncertainties
in income and health. While these concerns are consistent with theories emphasizing life-cycle and
precautionary saving, the idea that saving involves self-control was also mentioned repeatedly.

Key Words: Focus group, Saving, Financial planning, Survey of Consumer Finances


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1. Arthur B. Kennickell, Senior Economist, Federal Reserve Board, Washington DC, 20551. Phone: (202) 452-2247 Fax: (202) 452-5295. E-mail:
m1abk00@frb.gov

2. Martha Starr-McCluer, Economist, Federal Reserve Board, Washington, DC 20551. Phone: (202) 452-3587. E-mail: m1mas02@frb.gov

3. Annika E. Sundén, Economist, Federal Reserve Board, Washington, DC, 20551 phone: (202) 452-3887. E-mail: m1aes01@frb.gov

We are grateful to Chris Carroll, Karen Dynan, Eric Engen, Myron Kwast and Dean Maki for valuable comments on this work, and to Diane Whitmore
for research assistance. This paper reflects the views of the authors, and not necessarily those of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors or its staff.


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