Economic agents routinely face various types of economic uncertainty. Seldom have these various forms of uncertainty manifested themselves more sharply than in the transition economies of Central and Eastern Europe. In East Germany, the transition was especially rapid and sharp since East...

The literature on inter vivos and intergenerational transfers has largely focussed on the possible determinants of such transfers. Specifically, much of the empirical work has examined whether transfers are driven by altruistic relationship between “dynastic” households. However, the...