Description: Chapter 2 of the Models For Retirement Policy Analysis. This chapter describes microsimulation analysis and the basic features of microsimulation models. It provides background for the description of each of the microsimulation models reviewed in this report. Strengths and limitations of these models are addressed.

Description: This report presents the results of a survey conducted for the Society of Actuaries Pension Section Research Committee by Mathew Greenwald & Associates, Inc, March 2005. The purpose of the survey was to examine the prevalence of traditional and hybrid defined benefit pension plans in large organizations that have operations in the United States. The results of the study may prove useful to pension practitioners and policy makers wishing to gauge the effect of a recent US court ruling with potentially widespread implications for pension plans commonly referred to as cash balance plans.

Description: By identifying specific exogenous and insurer specific factors related to life-insurer performance, this study provides a basis for actuaries to build dynamic financial models for individual insurers. The Life Insurers performance measurements are 1. Return on Equity, 2. Return on Assets and 3. Increase in Capital and Surplus. This paper has been submitted to the North American Actuarial Journal for publication considerations. This documents the specific charts embedded in the report. Please see the SOA web site for the detail report.

Description: As the retirement system has shifted to a greater focus on defined contribution plans and personal responsibility, post-reitrement risk management has grown in importance. This report covers the study of the process of retirement.

Description: This document provides key findings from the 2007 Risks and Process of Retirement Survey related to how respondents conceive retirement and how they retire.

Description: This is the version of the SOA’s research report that appeared in the July 2008 issue of the Actuarial Practice Forum. This report presents modeling results of the possible impact of the IASB’s preliminary views of accounting for insurance contract liabilities on certain U.S. Life, health and annuity insurance products. This report presents comparisons of selected U.S. GAAP values to corresponding values of the proposed International Financial Reporting Standard IFRS results.

Description: The main elements of the current US, Canadian and proposed Solvency II regulatory capital regimes for property and casualty insurance companies are compared in this paper.

Description: Research report describing the results of an Emerging Risks Survey conducted in 2010. This survey attempts to track the thoughts of risk managers about emerging risks across time. The new top five are: 1. Fall in value of US Dollar. 2. International terrorism. 3. Chinese economic hard landing. 4. Oil price shock. 5. Failed and failing states.

Description: The Financial Reporting and Product Development Sections, along with the Committee on Life Insurance Research are pleased to make the following report available. Prepared by Bruce Rosner of Ernst & Young, the report summarizes the findings of a stochastic modeling efficiency study. With the help of twelve life insurance and annuity companies, the study tested six techniques for reducing the number of model points or scenarios required to achieve a given level of precision in stochastic actuarial modeling.

Description: This is the User's Guide that accompanies the Inflation Generator Excel spreadsheet which is associated with the research report entitled 'The Effect of Deflation or High Inflation on the Insurance Industry.'