Attitudes and saving in individual development accounts: Latent class analysis

This exploratory study focuses on classifying attitudes toward institutional features of Individual Development Accounts (IDAs). The study also examines the extent to which attitudes change and how they are associated with saving in IDAs. While attitudes toward IDAs were generally positive, latent class analysis (LCA) found three groups at Wave 3: highly positive, moderately positive, and mixed opinion. The study found dynamic changes in attitudes at 18 months and 48 months after the baseline interview. While 63% of participants showed no changes in attitudes, 22% changed their attitudes negatively and 15% positively. Participants with highly positive attitudes at both 18 months and 48 months had significantly more savings than participants without highly positive attitudes, suggesting that attitudes may influence saving outcomes in IDAs.