Summary
Women and Saving: Results of the 1998 Women's Retirement Confidence Survey—The 1998 Women's Retirement Confidence Survey (WRCS) is an independent analysis of women's attitudes and behaviors regarding retirement savings based on data from the 1998 Retirement Confidence Survey (RCS). The results offer encouraging news on women's retirement prospects, as well as areas of concern. Distinctions among women's approaches and attitudes toward savings and retirement planning at different life stages, and among social and ethnic groups, may be helpful for future educational programs targeted at increasing women's saving rates.
Results from the 1998 WRCS demonstrate the need for more and better education for women, particularly minority women, about planning and saving for retirement. Most women are saving for retirement, which is good, but many still are not. In addition, even women who are saving need help—most have no idea how much they need to save and many simply are not sure that they are doing a good job of investing their savings. Education will be a crucial component of efforts to ensure American women's retirement income security.