Kristina Karlsson defended her dissertation on 18 September
Kristina Karlsson defended her dissertation of 18 September.
On September 18, Kristina Karlsson successfully defended her thesis Essays on Labor Economics, Household Savings, and Pension Reforms.
Kristina Karlsson at her defense.
About the dissertation
Kristina Karlsson’s dissertation, Essays on Labor Economics, Household Savings, and Pension Reforms, explores how pension reforms influence people’s saving and work decisions, and how individual differences shape economic outcomes.
The first paper studies a Swedish pension reform that reduced public pension wealth for individuals close to retirement. The findings show no overall change in private saving but instead an increase in labor supply, as many chose to work longer. The largest effect is observed at ages 63–64.
The second paper analyzes a reform that shifted occupational pensions from defined benefit to defined contribution plans for younger workers. The results show that the reform led to a reduction in occupational pension wealth when an assumed rate of return is used. However, when actual returns are applied, the reform implies an increase in pension wealth. Overall, the reform has limited effects on private saving.
The third paper investigates how cognitive ability influences returns in labour and capital markets. The study finds that higher ability raises capital income nearly twice as much as labour income. The findings suggest that cognitive ability influences both investment performance and saving behaviour, and highlight ability-based differences in capital returns as an underappreciated driver of wealth inequality.
About the defense
The opponent at the defense was Professor Mårten Palme from Stockholm University. The grading committee consisted of Axel Cronert from Uppsala University, Åsa Hansson from Lund University and Mikael Elinder from Uppsala University. The supervisors were Spencer Bastani, Daniel Waldenström and Mikael Bask.