Early Retirement: The Impact of Changes in the Benefit Level

In the Netherlands a transition takes place from early retirement schemes, which are characterized by high implicit tax rates to schemes that have a higher degree of actuarial fairness. in this paper we look at the impact of this change at the labor participation rates of 55 to 65 years old persons. The analysis has been applied on repeated choices on the basis of stated preferences. We estimate a mixed (or random parameters) logit model. The most important finding is the independent role that is played by the number of years for which has built up pension claims. Its impact does not only run via the discounted value of future pension streams. The results indicate that the change in the early retirement schemes will considerably increase labor participation. A participation rate of 50% for the age group under consideration is within reach

Should the Same Side of the Market always move first in a Transaction? An Experimental Study

This paper investigates whether transactions where the buyer (or the seller) always moves first, and the seller (or the buyer) always moves second in the exchange gives higher payoffs than exchanges in which it is randomly determined who moves first. We examine the effect of two treatment variables: Partners versus Strangers and fixed versus changing positions. We find that both with fixed and with changing positions, second movers take advantage of their position by exploiting the first mover by "not delivering" the demanded good. However, with fixed positions exploitation occurs significantly less while reciprocal exchanges happen more often. In spite of this, it turns out that with fixed positions payoffs are very unevenly distributed. Unequal payoff distributions occur both under Partners and Strangers, but they appear to be more extreme among Strangers