The ant or the grasshopper? The long-term consequences of Unilateral Divorce Laws on savings of European households

B-Tier
Journal: European Economic Review
Year: 2019
Volume: 119
Issue: C
Pages: 97-113

Score contribution per author:

0.503 = (α=2.01 / 4 authors) × 1.0x B-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

Unilateral Divorce Laws (UDLs) allow people to obtain divorce without the consent of their spouse. Using the staggered introduction of UDLs across European countries, we show that households exposed to UDLs for a longer period of time accumulate more savings. This effect holds for both financial and total wealth and is stronger at higher quantiles of the wealth distribution. Consistent with a precautionary motive for savings, we also find that exposure to UDLs increases female labour supply, numeracy, trust in others and dispositional optimism.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:eee:eecrev:v:119:y:2019:i:c:p:97-113
Journal Field
General
Author Count
4
Added to Database
2026-01-24