Reforming Retirement: Values and Self-Interest Drive Support for Policy Reform in Opposite Directions

Americans' attitudes about retirement policy reform are being pulled in two directions. Because of their worries about retirement security, individuals are likely to support greater government intervention. However, because of their belief in the value of self-reliance, individuals are likely to be concerned about government interventions in the economy. This paper explores the tension between self-interest and self-reliant values and examines how these factors affect attitudes about retirement policy, testing, with a unique private survey, the degree to which concern about retirement security leads self-interested Americans increasingly to support retirement policy reforms and those with self-reliant values to decrease support. The paper also attempts to tease out the conditions under which self-interest and self-reliant values exert greater or less influence on views about retirement policy. In doing so, the paper helps clarify the level of public support for retirement policy reform and indicates the types of policies likely to garner higher levels of support.