Personal Finance

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Women Can't Build Secure Futures Without Financial Literacy
Despite the emergence of financial feminism and greater policy attention paid to this topic, women who face the greatest challenges in securing financial independence may still face barriers to improving their financial literacy. Women would benefit from free, diverse, and accessible forms of financial education.
Jun 27, 2024

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What Would It Take to Close America's Black-White Wealth Gap?
White Americans hold ten times more total wealth than Black Americans, a disparity that has worsened in recent decades. RAND researchers modeled wealth across millions of households and tested several funding scenarios to see which could most effectively close the gap.
May 9, 2023
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To Help African Americans Gain Generational Wealth, Look to the Housing Market
African American families have significantly less wealth than White families, even after reaching the middle class. Home ownership is, for the vast majority of Americans, the primary vehicle for accruing wealth, and passing it down through generations. This is a crucial time for policymakers to consider policies that focus on improving home ownership rates for African Americans.
Dec 7, 2022
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Renters' Last Chance for Pandemic Aid Before Evictions Resume
The pandemic has battered Los Angeles renters, and a new wave of pain is coming with the moratorium on evictions ending September 30. But this housing crisis doesn't have to turn into a new homelessness crisis. Californians with incomes below 80 percent of their area's median are eligible to receive funds from the COVID-19 Rent Relief program.
Sep 24, 2021
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Your Personal Information Could End Up in the Hands of Foreign Investors
If you've ever rented a property, you may have wondered what happens to the sensitive information on your application. Recent concerns over the foreign harvesting of personal information for questionable purposes should worry everyone.
Dec 16, 2020
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A Tale of Two Americas
Economic pain in the United States is obvious and palpable everywhere except in the stock market. This spotlights inequality that has been increasing for decades. Undoing disparities will require firm policy commitment over many years.
Jul 9, 2020
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From Lockdown to Locked Out: Coronavirus and the Looming Crisis in Rental Housing
Housing security is vital to individual and collective well-being. It's also a key component in the nation's economic performance. The looming coronavirus eviction crisis suggests the need to address the systemic problem of housing affordability and security now.
Apr 30, 2020
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The Second Wave of COVID Consequences
Economists closely watch measures of consumer confidence because they are highly predictive economic indicators. New consumer data reveals likely long-term and prolonged economic fallout.
Apr 24, 2020
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What the Shutdown Revealed About the Fragility of American Life
The government shutdown highlighted the lack of resilience many suffer from when they encounter unexpected economic events. The median American family has been losing ground for decades. Policy responses to address this situation will be complex and difficult, but are much needed.
Feb 11, 2019
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What Keeps Millennials Awake at Night Could Change Over Time
Millennials are less worried than baby boomers about national security topics and more worried about kitchen table issues, such as making ends meet each month and paying off debts. But this may have less to do with the fact that they are millennials and more to do with the fact that millennials are young.
Jul 30, 2018
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Is College Worth the Expense? Yes, It Is
Many American students struggle with the soaring cost of higher education. And for many college students, debt can have severe negative implications. But on balance, the benefits of a college degree appear to outweigh the costs.
May 22, 2017
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We Still Know Little About Financial Well-Being
There is a clear link between UK employees being concerned about their finances and negative health and well-being. The challenge for researchers is that financial well-being is hard to measure.
Feb 20, 2017
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Trends in Inequality and the World's Eight Richest Men
While Oxfam reports have done a good job of bringing attention to the problem of inequality, they may lead the public and policymakers to believe that global inequality has been rising instead of falling. Global inequality has actually been on the decline while inequality within the developed world is increasing.
Feb 10, 2017
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Book Review: 'Bourgeois Equality'
In Bourgeois Equality, economist and historian Deirdre McCloskey advances the theory that ideas — not capital, institutions, innovation, R&D, tax policy, monetary policy, or regulatory policy — are the propelling force behind economic and societal growth.
Sep 30, 2016
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You're Never Too Young to Plan for Retirement
Saving early for retirement is critical, but it's also important to stay on track during job changes. Younger workers tend to change jobs often, and if they cash out of their plans with each position, that can affect their long-term savings.
Sep 2, 2016
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Fixing Inequality of Opportunity
Research has fueled concerns about how income inequality drives inequality of opportunity. Commonsense approaches such as improvements in education and access to quality health care have been shown to provide young people with better opportunities.
Jul 6, 2016
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Zero Interest, Greater Inequality?
Low interest rates mandated by the Federal Reserve may have had and possibly continue to have adverse effects on income inequality. Those who argue for continuing near-zero short-term interest rate policy should be cognizant of this.
Nov 2, 2015
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Do Young 'Elites' Favor Income Redistribution?
Young 'elites' -- employed Americans who are 40 or younger, with high household incomes and graduate degrees -- and especially Democratic elites have a strong preference for income redistribution.
Oct 8, 2015
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Paying People to Change Behaviour in the UK: Lessons from Latin America
Policymakers in Western countries seeking new policy levers to tackle costly lifestyle behaviors in the age of austerity may do well to take up programs based on cash incentives. Recent analysis of conditional payment programs in Latin America highlights some useful lessons.
Mar 30, 2015
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Growth Versus Equality: Striking the Right Balance
There's a difficult trade-off between income equality and the growth that comes from successful innovation. But one doesn't have to overwhelm the other.
Jan 30, 2015
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New Survey Data Indicates Increasing Polarization in the Ways Democrats and Republicans View the Role of Government in Reducing Income Inequality
Today, Democrats are more than six times likelier than Republicans to believe the U.S. government should play a role in reducing income inequality. This is not due to differences in age, gender, education, or income distributions among the two parties.
Oct 9, 2014
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Understanding the Affordable Care Act
One of the chief aims of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is the expansion of insurance coverage to individuals who at present either cannot afford it or choose not to purchase it. Unfortunately, many Americans lack the financial literacy needed to navigate the numerous and complex options thrust upon them by the ACA.
Oct 2, 2013

Quoted

The [Israel-Hamas] war has exacerbated a divide in American politics. Historically, Israel enjoyed wide bipartisan support. That's no longer the case with more progressives and younger voters questioning this core tenet of U.S. foreign policy. The Gaza war has certainly exacerbated this shift and it's going to continue to influence the politics of American support for years to come

Raphael S. Cohen

Director, Strategy and Doctrine Program, RAND Project AIR FORCE, and Director of the Pardee RAND Graduate School National Security Program

Source: rand.org

While there have sometimes been intense policy debates, American support for Israel was historically bipartisan. Judging by the reaction to the Gaza war at many of the leading college campuses—the crucible of future leaders—Western attitudes will only further harden against Israel. Israel has an American problem that it will struggle to effectively address.

Brian Michael Jenkins

Senior Adviser to the RAND President

Source: rand.org

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China's Use of Generative AI and Social Bots

A Year After the October 7 Start of the Israel-Hamas Conflict: Q&A with RAND Experts

October 7th and the Limits of Diplomacy

The Math Equity Equation

The Policy Currents Podcast

Getting to Know Military Caregivers and Their Needs

Managing Escalation in Crisis and War

Assessing and Articulating the Wider Benefits of Research

Improving Access to Early Childhood Education

Personal Finance

Women Can't Build Secure Futures Without Financial Literacy

What Would It Take to Close America's Black-White Wealth Gap?

To Help African Americans Gain Generational Wealth, Look to the Housing Market

Renters' Last Chance for Pandemic Aid Before Evictions Resume

Your Personal Information Could End Up in the Hands of Foreign Investors

A Tale of Two Americas

From Lockdown to Locked Out: Coronavirus and the Looming Crisis in Rental Housing

The Second Wave of COVID Consequences

What the Shutdown Revealed About the Fragility of American Life

What Keeps Millennials Awake at Night Could Change Over Time

Is College Worth the Expense? Yes, It Is

We Still Know Little About Financial Well-Being

Trends in Inequality and the World's Eight Richest Men

Book Review: 'Bourgeois Equality'

You're Never Too Young to Plan for Retirement

Fixing Inequality of Opportunity

Zero Interest, Greater Inequality?

Do Young 'Elites' Favor Income Redistribution?

Paying People to Change Behaviour in the UK: Lessons from Latin America

Growth Versus Equality: Striking the Right Balance

New Survey Data Indicates Increasing Polarization in the Ways Democrats and Republicans View the Role of Government in Reducing Income Inequality

Understanding the Affordable Care Act

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