Projects (62)
Netspar endows several research projects at any given time, ranging from € 10,000 to € 500,000. Below you will find more information about ongoing and completed projects. Researchers can submit proposals within the various calls for short-term and long-term research projects that Netspar expands during the year. For more information, please contact policy advisor Silvie van Halder via 013 – 466 37 93 or via email.
Theme
The effect of macroprudential policies on pensions and retirement preparation
After the financial crisis, financial supervisors, such as the ECB and DNB, adopted several measures in order to enhance financial stability and economic recovery. Their primary aim was to prevent financial threats that lead to economic instability, but repercussions in the pension domain are very likely and need research. Pension funds, insurance companies and banks have been subject to targeted policies, the so called…
Topicality (short-term)
Transition to a new pension contract in the Netherlands – Lessons from abroad
Discussions on Dutch pension reform are currently converging towards an end. A number of requirements were set and should be part of the new pension contracts, such as the abolishment of the uniform contribution & accrual system (“doorsneesystematiek”), limited smoothing across generations and the use of a risk free discount curve for valuation, if any discount curve is needed. Agreement on pension contracts will…
Topicality (short-term)
Recovery Potential for DC Pension Plans
In this project, we want to focus on the uncertain pension wealth for participants in a pure DC system. We want to use a real (=inflation linked) annuity as a benchmark for the “pension ambition” of a participant. This choice for the benchmark is used to quantify to what extent a participant can maintain his or her standard of living after retirement. The utility…
Topicality (short-term)
Do more sustainable companies perform better during the corona crisis?
This project aims to offer a global perspective on this issue by gathering and analyzing data for a large number of companies around the world. We also intend to study which specific ESG aspects of a company are related to its stock market performance during the crisis. Furthermore, we will also investigate their stock market performance before the crisis. After all, if more sustainable…
Topicality (short-term)
Risk-taking behavior after COVID-19; global implications for financial markets and pensions
This project analyzes the effects of a global asymmetric shock in risk aversion on investment opportunities. Subsequently, different pension schemes will be compared to gain insight into how pension funds can best absorb the shock. An overlapping generation model (OLG), in which the (unforeseen) impact of a disaster (such as COVID-19) causes a greater increase in risk aversion in younger generations, will be analyzed.
Topicality (short-term)
Mortality probability modeling
In this study, we estimate mortality and survival after hospitalization as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak by age and for different risk groups. Risk groups are distinguished by the presence of chronic diseases, such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Where possible, we make a distinction between workers of different labor sectors (for example, workers in healthcare). These estimates are then used to adjust…
Topicality (short-term)
Ethics in data science en use of big data
In 2018, Netspar conducted a study in collaboration with its partners into the influence of Datascience on pension providers. An important part of data use has been kept out of the scope of the research and these are the ethical limits and preconditions that (should) apply. However, it has been argued that ethics provides an important limitation to the development of data-driven applications. We…
Topicality (short-term)
How can the risk attitude of a member be determined in a pension scheme?
In this topicality project we investigate whether we can creatively package the complex questions of the CTB method for measuring risk attitude in a game (research game), so that less literate people can easily answer the questions (gamification). We will test the game experimentally and compare it with a standard survey. Does the game lower selective non-response? Does the game improve the quality of…
Topicality (short-term)
Stacking of choices
The way choices are presented influences the choices people make. For example, people make different decisions when a series of choices are presented together or separately (Sunstein, 2018). Overseeing the consequences of a series of choices is particularly important in savings and investment decisions, because the consequences of different decisions are cumulative (e.g. how much you want to save, depends on what you’ve already…
Topicality (short-term)
Climate Change and Long-Horizon Portfolio Choice: Combining Theory and Empirics
“Climate change will affect the value of every single financial asset”, as argued by Bank of England Governor Mark Carney during the Bloomberg Global Business Forum in 2019. “And the question is: Is the financial sector ready for it?” The Dutch central bank also recognizes that financial institutions are exposed to climate risk and encourages pension funds to quantify the risks related to Environmental,…
