8 New Findings on What Americans Don't Know About Retirement Income

Just one in five Americans earned a passing grade on a financial literacy quiz conducted recently by a team of academic researchers at the American College of Financial Services, showing that years of educational efforts on the part of the advisory industry and retirement service providers appear to be falling short of their goals. The researchers presented their results this week during a lively press event hosted by the American College in New York. The authors of the analysis include Chet Bennetts, Michael Finke, Eric Ludwig, Steve Parrish and Kaylee Ranck, all of whom agreed that the topline finding should give financial professionals a moment of sober pause. This year's survey stands out for a few reasons, according to the panel, starting with respondents having less than $100,000 in investable assets being included for the first time. The age range of respondents remained the same, with the focus being on Americans age 50 and older. Now in its fourth iteration, the research shows that there are still major gaps in retirement literacy that differ meaningfully across demographics. Another key finding, according to the panel, is that knowledge and confidence are not the same thing. There are actionable outcomes from the survey. What's more, literacy is not necessarily "the" driver of good outcomes, but it is associated with other key factors in improved outcomes, including the presence of an advisor. See the accompanying slideshow for eight takeaways from the results.