Boise State University
12/03/2025 | News release | Distributed by Public on 12/03/2025 10:47
Cutler has paper published in Elder Law Journal
Josh Cutler
Joshua Cutler, associate professor of accountancy, had his paper, "How to Turn 100 Million Workers into Passive Shareholders," published in the Elder Law Journal. The paper uncovers how 100 million American workers became passive investors in the stock market, often without realizing it.
Cutler acknowledges that there has been a major shift in the U.S. retirement system, moving away from traditional pensions toward two alternatives: 401(k)s and IRAs. While that transition is widely known, Cutler highlights a quieter but more consequential third alternative; most modern retirement accounts now funnel workers' savings into passive index funds, especially those tied to the S&P 500. As a result, the nation's retirement security is increasingly built on a single investment strategy, raising concerns about systemic risk that policymakers have largely overlooked.
Cutler's paper traces the history behind the shift and explains how these changes came to be and argues that today's retirement system isn't just a financial trend - it's the product of decades of ideas, policies and institutional power.
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