Household Spending Research Articles

Effects of the Expanded Child Tax Credit on Household Spending: Estimates Based on U.S. Consumer Expenditure Survey Data

Effects of the Expanded Child Tax Credit on Household Spending: Estimates Based on U.S. Consumer Expenditure Survey Data

МОДЕЛЮВАННЯ ЗВ'ЯЗКУ МІЖ СТІЙКИМ РОЗВИТКОМ ТЕРИТОРІЙ, КУЛЬТУРНИМИ І КРЕАТИВНИМИ ІНДУСТРІЯМИ

The article is a continuation of regular research on the creative economy. This article solves the scientific and practical task of establishing the relationship between cultural, creative industries and sustainable development. The relationship between the sustainable development of territories and cultural, creative industries was modeled, which was implemented through a formalized approach based on the calculation and interpretation of the correlation coefficients between the Index of Progress in Achieving Sustainable Development Goals and four key socio-economic indicators that characterize the state of the cultural and creative sector, such as: value added employment, state and household spending on culture. The study compared the indicators by country for a ten-year period from 2011 to 2021: the EU countries, the UK and Ukraine, on the basis of which the countries were grouped depending on the closeness of the relationship between the indicators. The results of the grouping and interpretation of the data of the correlation analysis confirmed the connection between the creative industries and the sustainable development of territories. It has been proven that countries with developed cultural industries have higher indicators of progress in achieving sustainable development goals, countries with moderate, low and insignificant correlation show an insignificant relationship between cultural industries and progress in achieving sustainable development goals. It has been established that Ukraine, in terms of the tightness of ties between the creative sector and sustainable development, belongs to countries with a very high positive correlation. The expediency of stimulating the development of creative industries as a tool for achieving progress in sustainable development is substantiated. It is argued that the results obtained are the starting point for further research, which will take into account additional variables (factors) that were not taken into account in this article, which does not allow us to draw final conclusions about causal relationships.

Nexus Tax Laws and Economies of Density in E‐Commerce: A Study of Amazon's Fulfillment Center Network

We quantify the distortionary effects of nexus tax laws on Amazon's distribution network investments between 1999 and 2018. We highlight the role of two features of the expansion of Amazon's network: densification of the network of distribution facilities and vertical integration into package sortation. Densification results in a reduction in the cost of shipping orders, but comes at the expense of higher facility operating costs in more expensive areas and lower scale economies of processing shipments. Nexus laws furthermore generate additional sales tax liabilities as the network grows. Combining data on household spending across online and offline retailers with detailed data on Amazon's distribution network, we quantify these trade‐offs through a static model of demand and a dynamic model of investment. Our results suggest that Amazon's expansion led to significant shipping cost savings and facilitated the realization of aggregate economies of scale. We find that abolishing nexus tax laws in favor of a non‐discriminatory tax policy would induce the company to decentralize its network, lowering its shipping costs. Non‐discriminatory taxation would also entail lower revenue, however, as tax‐inclusive prices would rise, resulting in a fall in profit overall. This drop and the decline in consumer welfare from higher taxes together fall short of the increases in tax revenue and rival profit, suggesting that the abolishment of nexus laws would lead to an increase in total welfare.

Impact of Covid 19 on Buying Behaviour and Purchase Decision-Making: An Empirical Analysis

COVID 19 has changed the world. The way we do business, the way we study, the way we socialise, the way we travel, everything has changed. Several countries across the globe experienced lockdowns. The lockdown has forced people to stay indoors and be in survival mode. With no flights, salons, restaurants, hotels, transport, and even offices, the people were trapped in their homes. The home has been converted into a workplace, school as well as a playground. Several businesses have suffered losses and even faced shutdowns and on the other hand, COVID-19 has acted as a window of opportunity for many new products and services. Consumers are hence forced to change their purchase patterns. The grocery bill for most households has doubled during the lockdown. Dining out and travel has decreased. Generation Z is devoting the budget to education as they want to upgrade their skills and prepare themselves for the challenges that the post-COVID world will pose. OTT platforms have seen a surge in viewership as people are exploring all sorts of media to relax and rejuvenate in their homes. Groceries, automobiles, electronic gadgets, kitchen appliances, apparel, insurance, and financial investments are the major components of household spending. In this paper, we have explored the major components of household buying and how COVID-19 has impacted them. The study is based on inputs from a primary survey and existing reports and information. The primary survey helps us to understand the changes in household buying patterns, purchase decision-making, and gender roles. We have collected primary data using an online survey as face-to-face interaction was difficult due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The changes in household buying may become permanent changes or might fade away. Understanding this difference is crucial for marketers to formulate long-term strategies for their products and services. This study will provide insights and help marketers to understand the changing buying behaviour and purchase-decision making in households.

The change in household consumption patterns in Jordan: 1997–2017

This study aims to determine the change in consumption patterns of the Jordanian household during 1997–2017, as well as to estimate the income elasticities. The data from the household expenditure and income surveys conducted by the Jordanian Department of Statistics in the years: 1997, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2013, and 2017 were used. Graphs were prepared and percentages were calculated to measure changes in household consumption patterns. The average household expenditure index was used to measure the impact of income on changing consumption patterns (Selim, 2014). To estimate income elasticity, a pooled data regression model was adopted (Sugiarto & Wibowo, 2020). The estimated model is statistically significant at a level of 0.05. The study found a decrease in the percentage of household spending on the food group and an increase in the percentage of spending on the non-food group during the study period. This change in the family’s consumption pattern coincided with an increase in its income. Value of income elasticity was < 1 for food, clothing, and housing. It was > 1 for transportation and communication, education, and health. Therefore, we conclude that the consumer behavior of the Jordanian family is fully consistent with the theory of consumer behavior and its applications.

Reflexiones necesarias sobre seguridad alimentaria en Cuba

Cuba exhibits average indicators of apparent daily food consumption that exceed the daily nutritional recommendations. However, this consumption depends to a large extent on food imports, since policy efforts to reactivate the agricultural sector have not yet resulted in increases in domestic production. This situation has worsened in recent years, marked by the Covid-19 pandemic and the tightening of the U.S. blockade. As a result, there is evidence of a contraction in the availability of food as a result of decreases in domestic production and imports. This, together with other factors, makes access to food more difficult. Moreover, spending on food continues to be the most important part of household spending, limiting the possibilities for other equally important consumption. This article examines in greater depth the problems faced by Cuban families in achieving food security in the current context.

Сучасний стан зовнішнього боргу США

In recent decades, the world economy is characterized by a constant increase in external debt of almost all countries of the world (the only exceptions are those countries to which investors and creditors have no confidence), which exacerbates the problem of world debt and the interdependence of creditor countries and debtor countries. The article is aimed at analyzing the current state of foreign debt of the United States as a country that still has an impeccable credit history and high credit ratings, and at the same time in many publications is considered as a potential threat to the whole world in case of default. During the studied period (70 years), the U.S. external debt has been constantly growing, and the trend analysis conducted in the work indicates that this growth will continue in the medium term. The U.S. foreign debt in absolute terms is the largest in the world, having almost doubled over the past 10 years. At the same time, among the countries that have the highest ratio of total public debt to GDP, the United States ranks only fifth, because the USA have the largest GDP in the world. Among the main reasons for such a significant public debt, analysts point out the world’s largest military budget, significant tax cuts in recent years and significant costs to overcome the consequences of COVID-19. Due to the high level of GDP, high credit ratings and the status of a reserve currency in the U.S. dollar, the U.S. government securities are attractive to investors. Central banks of other countries, pension, insurance and investment funds still have a sufficient level of confidence in the United States and invest financial resources in debt securities of the U.S. government. The prospects for the U.S. foreign debt depend on the ability of the Federal Reserve System (FRS) to find solutions to domestic problems, among which the most acute are rising inflation and reducing household spending. A U.S. default is considered extremely unlikely, but in case of its announcement, it would have serious consequences for the global economy, creating uncertainty not only for the U.S. economy, but also for global financial stability. A default on the U.S. external obligations would result in a downgrade of the U.S. credit rating, which would cause significant volatility in the global stock market, a drop in stock indices and an increase in the cost of borrowing, which, in turn, would significantly reduce the ability of businesses and households to obtain loans. The fall of the U.S. dollar, which will result from the announced default, will cause commodity prices, including oil, to rise, leading to higher inflation globally. There will also be problems with supply chains in international trade.

The Impact of State Expenditure on Education and on Student Academic Achievement

Due to the impact of quarantine measures against COVID-19, the quality of education in the country’s schools has decreased. This issue is relevant and is on the agenda from the administration of the Head of State to university rectors and teachers, school principals and educators, students and their parents. Most of the participants in the discussion believe that too little money is allocated to the school. This article examines the impact of government spending on education and on students’ academic achievements. According to the literature review, it was revealed that an increase in financial support for secondary schools from the state will lead to an increase in the quality of education. To solve these research questions, we used a correlation analysis between student academic performance and government spending, and household spending. On the basis of the selected variables, a correlation analysis was carried out by the method of rank correlation of the relationship between student performance and the amount of state funding for education. The study concluded that the success of students in education is influenced by non-financial factors, such as educational standards and appropriate teaching methods. At the same time, a paradoxical situation has been revealed, almost every year the government increases annual spending on education in secondary schools, but student academic performance is constantly falling. In addition, there was no strong statistical relationship between student performance and the amount of State funding for education. Therefore, the question arises about the effectiveness of the use of allocated public funds for education.

Does mobile payment adoption affect the level and inequality of food expenditure?

ABSTRACT This study examines the impact of mobile payment adoption on the level and inequality of food expenditure using the 2017 Chinese General Social Survey data. We employ the Gini coefficient to measure food expenditure inequality and use the two-stage predictor substitution approach to address the endogeneity of mobile payment adoption. The results show that mobile payment adoption is associated with lower food expenditure. Specifically, mobile payment adopters spend 2,347 yuan less annually on food than non-adopters. Furthermore, food expenditure inequality is lower among mobile payment adopters than non-adopters. Owning a car, education, and income are positively associated with food expenditure; food expenditure inequality is lower in the more advanced regions of China. The results suggest that mobile payments can play an important role in helping households save considerably on food expenditure, a necessary outlay constituting a significant proportion of the overall spending of Chinese households.

Consumer behavior of Russians: opportunities and priorities

The article examines the dynamics of changes in the volume of monetary income as a means for life of Russians, including implementation of their consumption priorities. It shows distribution of the population's expenditures on consumption of food and non-food products, alcoholic beverages and payment for services. The analysis is based on government statistics on 20 percent income groups, it covers a four-year period, including two years on the eve of the coronavirus pandemic and two years of its development. In the structure of the use of monetary income of the entire (without breakdown into groups) population (2018-2021) are analyzed indicators characterizing changes not only in the purchase of goods and services, but also in the increase/decrease in savings, which act as a reserve for future consumer opportunities. There are identified differences in the change in the share of household spending on food and services in the overall structure of consumer spending by macro-regions of Russia — Federal districts. From the standpoint of macro-regional differentiation in the structure of the use of monetary income for a ten-year period, the emphasis is placed on the purchase of goods and payment for services in Russia as a whole, and especially on the active growth in the Far Eastern and North Caucasus macro-regions. The share of expenses for the purchase of a number of the most important food products in household consumer spending is considered by decile income groups. A comparative analysis of the least and most affluent groups of the population is carried out within the frames of the specified directions reflecting priorities in the consumer behavior of the Russian population.

Minimum dietary diversity and associated factors among children under the age of five attending public health facilities in Wolaita Soddo town, Southern Ethiopia, 2021: a cross-sectional study

BackgroundPoor quality diets are the greatest obstacles to survival, growth, development, and learning in children. Dietary diversity is a major problem in developing countries including Ethiopia. For better feeding practices and focused interventions, it is essential to identify dietary diversity in children. In order to draw firm conclusions, previous studies in Ethiopia were unable to get a thorough picture of the dietary diversity among children under the age of five. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to identify minimum dietary diversity and associated factors among children under the age of five attending public health facilities in Wolaita Soddo town, Southern Ethiopia.MethodsAn institution-based cross-sectional study design was used from February to March, 2021. The sample size of the study was 406. A simple random sampling was used to select the study participants. The minimum dietary diversity of the children was assessed by a standardized dietary assessment tool. The information was gathered using a standardized questionnaire that was administered by an interviewer. The collected data were entered into Epi Data 4.6 then exported to SPSS 26 for analysis. A multivariable logistic regression model was used to identify the independent predictors of the study. The statistical significance level was set at P < 0.05, and the degree of the association was measured using an AOR with a 95% CI.ResultsA total of 399 participants were involved in this study. Nearly half (52.1%) of the study children met the minimum dietary diversity. The most popular foods were grains, roots, and tubers (79.2%), followed by dairy products (58.1%), vitamin A-rich fruits and vegetables, and grains, roots, and tubers (58.1%). Children whose mothers worked as daily workers had a lower likelihood of meeting the minimal dietary diversity requirement. However, children with separate eating plates from adults, households with food security, low monthly food expenditure, collaborative decision-making on household spending, birth intervals greater than 24 months, and health education on infant and young child feeding were more likely to achieve the minimal dietary diversity requirements.ConclusionThe proportion of the minimum dietary diversity was higher than in previous studies from Ethiopia. The minimum dietary diversity was higher than in previous studies from Ethiopia. Family planning for birth spacing, nutritional counseling on infant and young child feeding, and parent communication in a child's feeding are critical to improve dietary diversity in a child's feeding.

Decomposition of socioeconomic inequalities in catastrophic out-of-pocket expenditure for healthcare in Canada

Despite a publicly financed health system for physician and hospital services, out-of-pocket health expenditure (OHE) accounts for a significant proportion of healthcare financing in Canada. We pooled annual Surveys of Household Spending conducted from 2010 to 2017 (n=34,105) to estimate the catastrophic out-of-pocket expenditure (COHE) burden using two definitions: the budget share (OHE exceeding 10% of a household's total consumption) and capacity-to-pay (OHE exceeding 40% of a household's total consumption minus basic subsistence needs). The Wagstaff index (WI) and the Erreygers Index (EI) were used to quantify and decompose socioeconomic inequalities in COHE. Results demonstrate that approximately 6% and 10% of the households faced COHE in Canada, depending on whether we used the budget share or capacity-to-pay approach to measure COHE. The COHE was found to be concentrated among low socioeconomic status (SES) households. Decomposition results indicate that besides SES, household characteristics (e.g., households headed by females and the presence of senior(s) in the households) were the most important factors contributing to the concentration of COHE among the poorer households. The lower utilization of healthcare services among the poor resulted in reduced COHE among these households. A higher burden of COHE is a major concern in Canada. Policies to enhance risk protection among specific populations such as the seniors are required to improve equity in healthcare financing in Canada.

Household Spending, Social Media Addiction, and Its Impact on Muslim Family Ties

Few are aware that spending more time on social media within the home and allocating domestic work can disrupt the household's economic equilibrium. Currently, the modern way of life has eroded the values of Muslim homes. On the basis of Islamic values, Muslim household ties reflect an attitude that balances the satisfaction of needs with the allocation of time for domestic work. This study examines the relationship between the household's social media addiction, household spending, and its impact on family ties in the West Sumatra Province of Indonesia. This study employs a relational survey model and quota sampling to collect data from 250 households in the ten cities/districts of West Sumatra Province with the most significant internet usage in 2020. Various statistical analysis methods, including descriptive statistics and moderating regression analysis using ordinary least squares (OLS), are utilized for modeling throughout the entire study. The empirical findings indicate that household spending has a significant negative impact on family ties, with a coefficient of 2.00, and that social media addiction among both parents and adolescents has a relatively significant negative impact on family ties, with coefficients of 0.0011 and 0.0082, respectively. In addition, this phenomenon has not occurred across all categories of household spending, nor has marital status moderated the relationship between household spending, social media addiction, and family ties. At the same time, adolescents from divorced homes are susceptible to social media addiction.======================================================================================================== ABSTRAK – Pengeluaran Rumah Tangga, Kecanduan Media Sosial, dan Dampaknya terhadap Ikatan Keluarga Muslim. Tidak banyak yang menyadari bahwa menghabiskan lebih banyak waktu dengan media sosial di dalam rumah tangga dan mengalokasikan pekerjaan rumah tangga dapat mempengaruhi keseimbangan umum dalam ekonomi rumah tangga. Gaya hidup modern saat ini telah mengikis nilai-nilai rumah tangga Muslim. Ikatan rumah tangga Muslim merupakan sikap harmonisasi pemenuhan kebutuhan dan alokasi waktu pekerjaan rumah tangga berdasarkan landasan nilai-nilai Islam. Penelitian ini mengeksplorasi fenomena kausal kecanduan media sosial rumah tangga, pengeluaran rumah tangga, dan dampaknya terhadap ikatan keluarga di Provinsi Sumatera Barat, Indonesia. Penelitian ini menggunakan model survei relasional, dengan teknik pengambilan sampel kuota 250 rumah tangga, dari sepuluh wilayah Kota/Kabupaten di Provinsi Sumatera Barat, dengan penggunaan internet paling tinggi pada tahun 2020. Berbagai metode analisis statistik digunakan, antara lain statistik deskriptif dan analisis regresi moderasi Ordinary Least Square (OLS), untuk pemodelan selama penelitian. Temuan empiris menunjukkan bahwa pengeluaran rumah tangga berpengaruh negatif signifikan terhadap ikatan keluarga, koefisien= 2,00, dan kecanduan media sosial antara orang tua dan remaja memiliki pengaruh negatif signifikan relatif 0,0011 dan 0,0082 terhadap ikatan keluarga. Selain itu, fenomena ini belum terjadi pada semua kategori pengeluaran rumah tangga, dan status perkawinan belum memoderasi pengeluaran rumah tangga dan interaksi kecanduan media sosial pada ikatan keluarga. Pada saat yang sama, remaja di rumah tangga yang bercerai rentan terhadap paparan kecanduan media sosial.

Income-related inequality in smoking habits: A comparative assessment in the European Union

This paper investigates the association between income and the habit of smoking in 30 European countries. Using the European Health Interview Survey carried out between 2013 and 2015, the analysis focuses on the relationship among net monthly equivalised income of the household, the type of smoking behaviour, and the daily average number of cigarettes smoked. Income-related inequalities are estimated using the Erreygers Index. Results show that smoking is a habit which is mainly rooted in the lowest part of the income distribution both at individual and country level, regardless of the average level of per capita income. Considering that tobacco use worsens poverty conditions by diverting household spending from basic needs to tobacco itself, our results give support to a tax increase in order to discourage its use and to the implementation of educational and prevention programs aimed at helping people to quit smoking.

Bayesian Causal Inference with Bipartite Record Linkage

In some scenarios, the observational data needed for causal inferences are spread over two data files. In particular, we consider scenarios where one file includes covariates and the treatment measured on a set of individuals, and a second file includes responses measured on another, partially overlapping set of individuals. In the absence of error-free direct identifiers like social security numbers, straightforward merging of separate files is not feasible, so that records must be linked using error-prone variables such as names, birth dates, and demographic characteristics. Typical practice in such situations generally follows a two-stage procedure: first link the two files using a probabilistic linkage technique, then make causal inferences with the linked dataset. This does not propagate uncertainty due to imperfect linkages to the causal inference, nor does it leverage relationships among the study variables to improve the quality of the linkages. We propose a joint model for simultaneous Bayesian inference on probabilistic linkage and causal effects that addresses these deficiencies. Using simulation studies and theoretical arguments, we show that the joint model can improve the accuracy of estimated treatment effects, as well as the record linkages, compared to the two-stage modeling option. We illustrate the joint model using a constructed causal study of the effects of debit card possession on household spending.

The importance of labour market responses, competitiveness impacts, and revenue recycling in determining the political economy costs of broad carbon taxation in the UK

Despite broad acceptance of the need to drastically reduce carbon emissions and limit global warming, political debates persist regarding the acceptability of actions to internalise carbon costs given potential impacts on the cost-of-living and income generation. We present fundamental macroeconomic and more complex computable general equilibrium analyses to consider how introducing broad carbon taxation might impact key macroeconomic indicators, taking the UK as an applied example. One key insight is that, with no other policy intervention, such a move introduces contractionary pressure through increases in consumer prices that reduces GDP, employment, and household spending, and erodes government revenue gains. The extent of contraction depends on the degree of resistance in labour markets to real wage rate reductions alongside substitutability away from taxed energy in determining prices, and on consequent export demand responses. A second is that where government prioritises balancing its budget, partial recycling of carbon tax revenues aimed at moderating negative impacts on firm costs and household real spending power can reduce wider economy losses. However, this is limited by wage bargaining and domestic consumption responses in a labour supply constrained and very open economy, with income tax recycling minimising macroeconomic losses at the cost of increasingly regressive outcomes.

IMPACT OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON THE WELFARE LEVEL OF FRESHWATER CONSUMPTION FISH CULTIVATION

The existence of the COVID-19 pandemic has become a scourge for the community and several Indonesian sectors, including the fisheries sector. The rapid spread of COVID-19 prompted the government to issue regulations requiring people to carry out large-scale social restrictions. This policy causes community activities and aquaculture production to decrease, consumption of freshwater fish. This study aims to analyze the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the welfare level of freshwater fish cultivators in Toboali District, and examine the efforts made by freshwater fish cultivators in Toboali District to maintain their business during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study uses a survey method conducted on several freshwater fish cultivators in Toboali District with the criteria that the cultivators have been cultivating freshwater fish for 2 years and only do the enlargement. The data were analyzed using a descriptive approach. Based on the results of research that the Covid-19 pandemic has an impact on decreasing household income, increasing household spending, and decreasing the quality of education for household members. The declining income of farmers was due to the closed culinary business and the low selling price of fish. The household expenditure of fish cultivators consuming freshwater in a month during the COVID-19 pandemic increased because farmers had to pay bank loan installments. The declining quality of education occurs due to several factors from online learning and children who help work. Various efforts made by freshwater fish cultivators to maintain their business during the COVID-19 pandemic are family members coming to work, reducing the amount of production, reducing household expenses, looking for alternative jobs, utilizing social networks, using social media as a marketing medium, making bank loans. , and maintain fish quality.

Impact of Monetary Policy on Consumption and Investment in Indonesia

Monetary policy transmission mechanism has a complex process since its implementation it involves changes on banking sector, economic actors, the length of time in implementing policies, as well as changes in monetary policy transmission channels according to economic condition of the country. This study aims to examine how consumption and investment respond to monetary shocks that occur in Indonesia. These results indicate that the impact of monetary policy on consumption due to changes in interest rates is larger and more sensitive than investment, according to the impulse response test. The main channel of the effect of policy shocks obtained from consumption is transmitted to output. Therefore, the monetary policy issued by Bank Indonesia will have a greater impact on household spending than corporate spending. This means that channel consumption is the main mechanism of transmission.

Household debt: An institutionalist perspective and empirical assessment

The paper deals with the empirical evidence on household borrowing behavior from an institutionalist perspective. Assuming close interconnections between the availability of credit and consumerist culture, we estimate the effects of precedence of consumption, status consumption, and “investment”-minded buying driven by debt pattern. We rely on official statistics on household debt, disposable income and spending since the early 2000s to 2020. The institution of precedence of consumption is measured through data on loans drawn by households, outstanding loans, loan payments, household consumption and disposable income. Corresponding metrics illustrate that debt-financed consumption has become a widespread scheme. Financialization rate is measured separately for retail sector and housing market. Households are becoming more dependent on loan payments, as we estimated for different income groups using the paymentto-income ratios. In case with car loans, these metrics serve as indirect evidence for the embeddedness of conspicuous motive. Evidence on housing loans suggests that “investment”-minded buying can hardly result in a short-term gain. Research findings show that the pattern of precedence of consumption feeds the socially induced motives of conspicuous waste and speculation. Causality can go the other way too. The novelty of our approach is that we integrate the discourse of financialization into the institutionalist perspective and combine the theoretical constructs of precedence of consumption, conspicuous waste and speculative motive, seen as the factors of debt dependence. We contribute to applied studies by introducing factual data on household debt and providing evidence of interplay between these factors. The research is relevant socially and economically in view of the connection between unsustainable household debt and consumerist culture.

Children and Retirement Income Adequacy

A typical household spends about $13,000 per year providing each child with food, clothing, shelter, and other essentials of life, with parental expenditures on children totaling 5% of gross domestic product. Several studies have shown that how children are assumed to interact with household expenditures and saving has first-order effects on judgments of the adequacy of retirement saving by US households, yet the effect of children on their parents’ ability and need to save for retirement is unresolved. This article uses data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) to track changes in household spending and saving as children transition to financial independence and parents’ transition from work into retirement. The PSID data accord with an interpretation of the life-cycle model in which parental households consume more and save less during the period children are being raised, but reduce consumption and increase saving as children become economically independent. These results point toward a more optimistic picture of the adequacy of US household retirement savings.