Attitudes of South Africans Regarding Provision for Old Age, 1986

An investigation into the attitudes of South Africans regarding provision for old age was undertaken by the Institute for Sociological and Demographic Research (ISODEM) of the Human Sciences Research Council. The research was conducted on behalf of the work committee of the sub-programme: Affordable Material Provision of the National Programme: Affordable Social Security. The investigation sought to find out how South Africans are providing for their old age, what their attitudes are towards making provision for income after retirement, and what attitudes are towards contributory pension funds in particular. The investigation by the HSRC was thus undertaken to examine the perceptions and the attitudes of South Africans of and concerning the way in which people should be provided for in old age. The findings would provide a basis for policy and decision-makers to plan and effect a new pension dispensation for the benefit of all South Africans and the pension industry in general. Specific aims of the investigation were: a) To assess the extent and types of provision that South Africans are making for old age; b) To understand the expectations that individuals have of the provision they make; c) To determine the most desirable combinations of provision in terms of individual's perceptions of who should provide for old people; d) To assess the attitudes of individuals' perceptions of the most desirable way of benefitting from pension contributions, and f) To assess their attitudes towards preservation and transferability of pension contributions. The findings would enable an evaluation of the climate surrounding the present system, identification of problems perceptibly relating to the system, and a determination of the heterogeneous needs of the various populations and the special needs of subcategories of persons of a pension system