Abstract:

With the rapid aging of the population, endowment insurance provided by the government is becoming increasingly important. The effect of endowment insurance on retirement life support has also received significant research attention. This study is the first to combine policy and non-policy factors of endowment insurance. Following the characteristics of execution of the endowment insurance policy in our country, a research model of the moderation of the effects of endowment insurance policy values on the perceived retirement life support by improving the life satisfaction and income of employees in private firms is presented. The model was empirically tested based on a survey of 203 respondents from 15 private firms in China. The hierarchical regression results showed that the economic, social, and political values of the endowment insurance policy have direct positive effects on the retirement life support perceived by employees in private firms. Endowment insurance policy has basic functions in the retirement of employees. All of its economic, social, and political values cannot be neglected. To realize the endowment insurance policy value, the economic, social, and political factors should be balanced. The government should not only focus on the increase in size and numbers of the endowment insurance, but also emphasize the coverage, supervision, and share of endowment insurance. The government should also narrow the gap of pension treatment between employees in private firms and those in government and social institutions, so that the endowment insurance can cover all kinds of employees. Not only should the policy execution be followed with interest, but also the entire process of the policy. To meet the requirements of the employees for their retirement life, the improvement of endowment insurance policy should start with the policy design. The mechanism of traced policy execution, controllable policy environment, and circular policy results should also be established. Additionally, the current life satisfaction and income of employees in private firms suppress the positive effects of endowment insurance policy values on the perceived retirement life support, which suggests that fair endowment insurance policy is a prerequisite, but is still not a sufficient condition for retirement life support. By improving the life satisfaction and income of employees in private firms, their current level of satisfaction can also be improved and the pressure imposed by the government on pension payment can be reduced. The perceived retirement life support is not only dependent on the policy or non-policy factors, but also relies on the balance of these two factors. This finding has important implications for the design of long-term portfolios of governance on endowment insurance. Finally, the effects of moderation of life satisfaction and income also indicate the source of the perceived retirement life support, that is, the security before and after retirement. In previous literature, the perceived retirement life support is limited only after retirement and focused on old people. However, our findings suggest that as the reflection of the status after retirement, the endowment insurance policy values have direct effects on the retirement life support for the employees, whereas life satisfaction and income, which represent the status before retirement, moderate the effects of endowment insurance policy on the perceived life support. Therefore, strengthening the support for the retirement life of employees could result in improvement on the quality of life before and after retirement.

Key words: Endowment insurance, policy value, private firm, perceived life support, satisfaction