Why are lower-income parents less likely to open an RESP account? : the roles of literacy, education and wealth / by Aneta Bonikowska and Marc Frenette.: CS11-0019/449E-PDF
"The Government of Canada offers various financial incentives for parents to save for their children's postsecondary education by contributing to a Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP). However, RESP participation rates tend to rise substantially with family income, and previous research has demonstrated that family wealth was the single most important reason for this trend (among factors that could be examined). This study explores whether differences in parental literacy, numeracy and financial literacy can further account for some of the gap in RESP participation by level of family income. The results suggest that differences in wealth (which may also reflect differences in unobserved characteristics correlated with wealth) remain the single most important factor behind the gap in RESP participation by family income, even after accounting for differences in parental levels of education and literacy, numeracy and financial literacy. In fact, differences in wealth accounted for 50% to 79% of the total gap in RESP participation between families in the top and bottom income quartiles, depending on the method and dataset used. Differences in financial literacy accounted for a moderate share of the RESP participation gap (between 13% and 19%), while differences in literacy and numeracy played smaller, statistically insignificant roles"--Abstract, page 5.
Permanent link to this Catalogue record:
publications.gc.ca/pub?id=9.888536&sl=0
| Department/Agency | Statistics Canada. Analytical Studies Branch, issuing body. |
|---|---|
| Title | Why are lower-income parents less likely to open an RESP account? : the roles of literacy, education and wealth / by Aneta Bonikowska and Marc Frenette. |
| Series title | Analytical Studies Branch research paper series, 1205-9153 ; no. 449 |
| Publication type | Series - View Master Record |
| Language | [English] |
| Other language editions | [French] |
| Format | Electronic |
| Electronic document | |
| Note(s) | Issued also in French under title: Pourquoi les parents à faible revenu sont-ils moins susceptibles d'ouvrir un compte de REEE? Les rôles de la littératie, de l'éducation et du patrimoine financier. "11F0019M No. 449." "2020012." "July 2020." Issued also in HTML format. Includes bibliographical references (pages 35-36). |
| Publishing information | [Ottawa] : Statistics Canada = Statistique Canada, 2020. ©2020 |
| Author / Contributor | Bonikowska, Aneta, author. |
| Description | 1 online resource (36 pages) : colour illustrations. |
| ISBN | 9780660353333 |
| Catalogue number |
|
| Departmental catalogue number | 11F0019M |
| Subject terms | Low income parents -- Canada -- Finance, Personal -- Statistics. Financial literacy -- Canada -- Statistics. Income -- Canada -- Statistics. Education savings accounts -- Canada -- Statistics. |
Request alternate formats
To request an alternate format of a publication, complete the Government of Canada Publications email form. Use the form’s “question or comment” field to specify the requested publication.- Date modified: