The youngest and oldest working age adults are the most confident in their ability to retire and maintain their current lifestyle.
According to a survey of retirement plan participants by OneAmerica, 44 percent of those ages 20 to 30 and 45 percent of those over 50 said they are either confident or very confident they will be able to retire. Only 37 percent of those age 30 to 40 and 35 percent of those 40 to 50 were that confident.
Twenty-five percent of those between the ages of 40 and 50 said they were completely doubtful or not confident in their ability to retire and maintain their current lifestyle.
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"The drivers of retirement confidence likely vary from generation to generation," said Marsha Whitehead, vice president of marketing communications for the retirement services division. "Younger people may be overly confident because retirement seems so far off to them whereas older people may be drawing confidence from their life experience or may have adjusted their expectations."
The companies of OneAmerica recently surveyed visitors to its participant website to determine how they learned about finances and prepared for retirement, what resources are most effective and how confident they are with their retirement preparations. 6,360 participants responded to the online survey, which OneAmerica plans to replicate in coming years to gauge progress in helping participants prepare for retirement.
The OneAmerica companies have also developed a guidance program for plan sponsors interested in improving the education they deliver to employees that helps them understand how to reach different generations with tailored education and information.
"It's imperative that plan sponsors and providers dialogue with participants who don't feel as confident to discover the reasons for their hesitations and anxieties and work to instill confidence," she said.
OneAmerica Financial Partners, Inc., headquartered in Indianapolis, Ind., is a group of companies involved in the insurance and financial services marketplace.
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