Top Research Papers on Financial Literacy

Abstract This article uses data from the 2020 TIAA Institute-GFLEC Personal Finance (P-Fin) Index to show that many American families were financially fragile well before the COVID-19 pandemic hit the U.S. economy. Financial fragility is particularly severe among specific demographic groups, such as African-Americans and those with low income. The article also shows that financial fragility is strongly linked to financial literacy and that many Americans are ill-equipped to deal with the financial decisions needed to navigate through a financial crisis. Suggestions are provided to deal with pe...

Digital financial literacy is an emerging concept that emphasizes necessary knowledge and skills to carry out financial transactions on digital platforms. In this study, we aim to examine the link between digital financial literacy and financial well-being among Korean adults. Using online survey data, this study shows that digital financial literacy is associated with financial well-being, and this association is largely due to financial knowledge and the ability to protect against digital fraud. Digital financial literacy carried larger marginal effects on financial well-being compared to fi...

Financial literacy is a path to sustainability and has an important role in ensuring the financial sustainability of individuals, families, enterprises and national economies. The level of these economic indicators such as debt, payment discipline, savings and financial management all translate into prosperity or insolvency and bankruptcy and result partially from financial literacy. The higher the level of financial literacy, especially of young people, the more favourable the level of economic indicators, which translates into the economy and sustainable development. With this study we aim t...

We investigate and compare the effects of financial literacy and financial interest on risk tolerance, evaluating not only at the means, but also the whole distribution. We use a unique sample of 12,156 Swedish bank customers combining bank-register data with survey data. Results show that both financial literacy and financial interest are associated with higher risk tolerance. They further show that the impact of financial interest is significantly higher than the impact of financial literacy. Differences are also observed across the distribution. Quantile regressions show that financial inte...

Abstract In this editorial, we provided an overview of the papers in the inaugural issue of the Journal of Financial Literacy and Wellbeing. They cover topics that are at the center of academic research, from the effects of financial education in school and the workplace to the importance of financial literacy for the macro-economy. They also cover financial inclusion and how financial literacy can promote the use of basic financial instruments, such as bank accounts. Moreover, they cover financial decision making in the context of complex instruments, such as mortgages, reverse mortgages, and...

A growing body of literature, which primarily focuses on the developed world, investigates the implications of financial literacy (or lack thereof) on households' well-being. This paper examines the level of financial literacy and its impact on retirement preparation in China, a country that is growing old before getting rich. Drawing on internationally comparable survey questions, we find that a large proportion of Chinese people, especially the elderly, women, and under-educated, lack financial knowledge. The empirical results show that financial literacy has a strong and positive impact on ...

Abstract We survey a large sample of Swedish households and connect the responses to administrative data to relate pro-environmental attitudes and values to actual investment decisions. Pro-environment households are not more likely to hold pro-environment portfolios. This results from financial disengagement: they are less likely to own stocks, check pension balances, or make green active retirement planning choices. Green financial engagement is stronger in settings where financial literacy is higher or where informational hurdles are lower. Informational barriers appear to prevent financial...

This document represents the 2022 update of the Toolkit for Measuring Financial Literacy and Financial Inclusion. The OECD/INFE questionnaire included in this toolkit is designed to collect relevant information about financial literacy, financial inclusion, financial resilience and financial well-being within a country, and to compare such levels across countries. The 2022 version of the questionnaire also includes questions to measure digital financial literacy, developed with the collaboration of the OECD/INFE Working Group on Digital Financial Literacy. These questions cover the three compo...

Research aims: This study aims to investigate the relationship between the level of digital financial literacy (DFL) and financial behaviors, namely saving behavior, spending behavior, and investment behavior among the millennial generation in Indonesia.Design/Methodology/Approach: A survey method was performed in this study, and 741 millennial generations aged 25–40 years from several cities in Indonesia participated in this study. The Structural Equation Model using SmartPLS was employed to estimate the relationship of the latent variable.Research findings: Based on the data, it was found th...

Abstract Given the paucity of comprehensive summaries in the extant literature, this systematic review, coupled with bibliometric analysis, endeavours to take a meticulous approach intended at presenting quantitative and qualitative knowledge on the ever‐emerging subject of financial literacy. The study comprises a review of 502 articles ‐ published in peer‐reviewed journals from 2000 to 2019. Citation network, page‐rank analysis, co‐citation analysis, content analysis and publication trends have been employed to identify influential work, delineate the intellectual structure of the field and ...

We examine gender differences in financial literacy among high school students in Italy using\ndata from the 2012 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). Gender differences\nin financial literacy are large among the young in Italy. They are present in all regions and are\nparticularly severe in the South and the Islands. Combining the rich PISA data with a variety of\nother indicators, we provide a thorough analysis of the potential determinants of the gender gap in\nfinancial literacy. We find that parental background, in particular the role of mothers, matters for\nthe financi...

We undertake an assessment of our two decades of research on financial literacy, building on our empirical research and theoretical work casting financial knowledge as a form of investment in human capital. We also draw on recent data to determine who is the most—and least—financially savvy in the United States, and we highlight the similarity of our results in other countries. A number of convincing studies is now available, from which we draw conclusions about the effects and consequences of financial illiteracy, and what can be done to fill these gaps. We conclude by offering our thoughts o...

Abstract Digital innovations are transforming financial services and resulting changes in consumer behavior and personal money management. Diffusion of pervasive digital technologies offers individuals quick and easy access to various digital services bringing opportunities and challenges into their personal money management. The study aimed to explore how digitalization affects individuals' financial literacy and financial capability. As a result, we identified three main themes in the intersection of finance and digitalization: Fintech, Financial behavior in digital environments, and Behavio...

Abstract Understanding the financial well-being of lower-income group is a critical concern of any government as this group struggles most to meet up with their necessities. Despite the significance, little is known about financial well-being of low-income group. This study attempts to investigate the relationship between financial literacy, financial behaviour, financial stress, and financial well-being of B40 group in Malaysia. A total of 412 usable responses was derived from a survey in Klang Valley and analysed the data following partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM...

Success in the current complex and sophisticated financial marketplaces depends on the ability of people to make sustainable financial decisions to improve their future well-being, for which financial literacy is a pathway. This study examines the relationship between the demographic and socio-economic factors and financial literacy in Japan by segregating financial literacy into financial knowledge, attitude, and behavior, and providing a deeper understanding of the relationships. The methodology included using data from the Financial Literacy Survey 2016 by the Central Council for Financial ...

Governments in many countries are facing the challenge of providing sufficient retirement incomes for an ageing population. Through bibliometric analysis, this paper disentagles the intelectual and conceptual structure of the research on financial literacy in the various phases of retirement financial planning, identifying the most recent trends. The results are especially relevant for the financial community, considering the increasing emphasis of institutions and society in the use of financial literacy as a way of incresasing the responsibility of individual citizens in the design of their ...

Based on data from the 2014 China Family Panel Studies (CFPS), this paper investigates the effects of financial literacy on Chinese households' portfolio choices and investment returns from the financial market. We find that financial literacy significantly increases households' investments in risky assets. Financial literacy may have an impact by increasing capacities to understand and compare financial assets. However, we further find that it is not necessary for all investors to have financial knowledge to gain higher investment returns from financial markets. Our results show that financia...

Understanding why women display less financial literacy than men is crucial for developing policies to reduce gender inequalities and improve womens financial behavior. In a series of studies, we investigate whether the observed gender gap in financial literacy can be identified in nonnumerical contexts, if it can be related to confidence in financial matters, and if it can be attributed to stereotype threat, which posits that inbuilt prejudices about gender and finance undermine performance among women in tasks involving finance. We utilized data from the Swedish Standardized Scholastic Aptit...

Abstract Inclusive finance is a core concept of finance that makes various financial products and services accessible and affordable to all individuals and businesses, especially those excluded from the formal financial system. One of the leading forces affecting people's ability to access financial services in rural areas is financial literacy. This study investigated the impacts of financial knowledge on financial access through banking, microfinance, and fintech access using the Bangladesh rural population data. We employed three econometrics models: logistic regression, probit regression, ...

Women are less financially literate than men.It is unclear whether this gap reflects a lack of knowledge or, rather, a lack of confidence.Our survey experiment shows that women tend to disproportionately respond "do not know" to questions measuring financial knowledge, but when this response option is unavailable, they often choose the correct answer.We estimate a latent class model and predict the probability that respondents truly know the correct answers.We find that about one-third of the financial literacy gender gap can be explained by women's lower confidence levels.Both financial knowl...