nep-fle New Economics Papers
on Financial Literacy and Education
Issue of 2024‒04‒01
four papers chosen by



  1. Finanzielle Bildung in Deutschland: Eine explorative Analyse By Treu, Johannes; Elss, Valerie
  2. Households' financial resilience, risk perceptions, and financial literacy: Evidence from a survey experiment By Bucher-Koenen, Tabea; Fessler, Pirmin; Silgoner, Maria Antoinette
  3. Digital Interventions to Increase Financial Knowledge: Evidence from a Pilot RCT By Oberrauch, Luis; Kaiser, Tim
  4. Educación financiera y bienestar financiero: evidencia de Colombia en un entorno de alta inflación By Diego A. Rodríguez-Pinilla; Luis Eduardo Castellanos-Rodríguez; Andrea López-Rodríguez; Pilar Esguerra-Umaña

  1. By: Treu, Johannes; Elss, Valerie
    Abstract: Financial literacy is playing an increasingly important role in today's complex world. Since the beginning of the new millennium, more countries and international organizations have recognized the importance of measuring and educating people about financial literacy, for example, to guide their market behavior. Using the OECD understanding of financial education and with the help of the OECD toolkit for this, the current state of financial literacy was recorded as part of a Germany-wide representative survey. Methodologically, the aim is to use exploratory data analysis to present an initial analysis and evaluation of the primary data collected. This is also linked to an investigation into whether differences can be found regarding financial literacy, whether correlations exist between the various variables, and which factors can explain financial literacy in Germany.
    Keywords: Finanzielle Bildung, Financial Literacy, Explorative Datenanalyse
    JEL: G5 G53
    Date: 2024
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:iubhbm:284394&r=fle
  2. By: Bucher-Koenen, Tabea; Fessler, Pirmin; Silgoner, Maria Antoinette
    Abstract: We examine the financial resilience of Austrian households, relating it to their experience of financial shocks earlier in life and to their financial literacy. We find that previous negative (positive) financial shocks are negatively (positively) related to financial resilience. Financial literacy and households' financial resilience are positively related. Based on a randomized survey experiment, we investigate the role of over-optimism when evaluating the potential impact of future events on households' financial situation. Households are asked to assess specific risks for their own household (treatment) or for a household with similar characteristics (control). On average, households assign a lower probability to shocks that negatively affect personal finances if asked for their own household compared to a similar household. We do not find the reverse effect for positive shocks. We find a negative correlation between over-optimism and financial literacy, indicating that financial literacy is relevant to both, financial behavior and the ability to assess financial shocks.
    Keywords: financial fragility, expectations, risk assessment, financial behavior, over-optimism
    JEL: D14 D91 G53
    Date: 2023
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:zewdip:283612&r=fle
  3. By: Oberrauch, Luis (University of Kaiserslautern); Kaiser, Tim (University of Kaiserslautern)
    Abstract: We study the effects of low-intensity digital financial education interventions on undergraduate students' financial knowledge in a small-scale RCT. We test the substitutability or complementarity of two treatments: an online video financial education treatment and an incentive-based approach where students are issued pre-paid voucher cards worth 50 EUR to register with a broker specializing in roboadvised investment in Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs). Three months after the intervention, the video treatment enhanced financial knowledge scores by more than 50 percent of a standard deviation. Conversely, the vouchers showed no effect. The findings suggest that subsidies encouraging roboadvised investment into ETFs cannot substitute direct financial education in our setting, and there is no evidence for complementarity between these interventions in creating human capital in the domain of financial decision-making.
    Keywords: digital intervention, financial literacy, financial knowledge, financial education, robo-advisor, ETFs
    JEL: G53
    Date: 2024–02
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16811&r=fle
  4. By: Diego A. Rodríguez-Pinilla; Luis Eduardo Castellanos-Rodríguez; Andrea López-Rodríguez; Pilar Esguerra-Umaña
    Abstract: Este estudio, basado en una encuesta representativa a nivel nacional en Colombia, revela que solo un 16, 4% de la población colombiana puede responder correctamente las 3 preguntas claves que se han diseñado para evaluar el conocimiento financiero de los individuos, con variaciones significativas entre diferentes grupos demográficos. La pregunta sobre inflación, sin embargo, es contestada correctamente por el 79% de los encuestados, siendo el segundo país con mayor conocimiento de este fenómeno de todos en los que se han realizado estudios recientes sobre estos temas. Además, los datos indican que la experiencia y haber vivido episodios inflacionarios aumenta la probabilidad de estar más familiarizados con el concepto de inflación. Por otro lado, como es de esperarse, la información recogida refleja que un mayor nivel educativo o socioeconómico se correlacionan positivamente con una mejor comprensión de conceptos financieros. Asimismo, se evidencia que un mejor desempeño en las preguntas de conocimiento financiero aumenta la precisión con la que los agentes estiman la inflación futura, lo cual presumiblemente les permite tomar decisiones de consumo más adecuadas para su bienestar. No obstante, a pesar de que las personas con un mejor conocimiento reducen su consumo en contextos de inflación alta esto no se ve reflejado en un aumento del uso de productos de inversión que les permita protegerse ante la pérdida de su poder adquisitivo debido al aumento de los precios. La investigación permite concluir la importancia y urgencia de desarrollar políticas dirigidas a incrementar la educación económica y financiera, particularmente en grupos vulnerables, de tal manera que les permita a las personas ahorrar, invertir, endeudarse menos, asegurar su patrimonio y así garantizar menor pobreza y mayor equidad, contribuyendo a un mayor bienestar de la población a lo largo de los distintos ciclos de la vida. **** ABSTRACT: This study, based on a nationally representative survey in Colombia, reveals that only 16.4% of the Colombian population can correctly answer the 3 key questions designed to assess individuals' financial knowledge, with significant variations among different demographic groups. The inflation's question, however, is answered correctly by 79% of respondents, making it the second country with the highest knowledge of this phenomenon among those studied recently on these topics. Furthermore, the data indicate that experience and having lived through inflationary episodes increase the probability of being more familiar with the concept of inflation. On the other hand, as expected, the collected information reflects that a higher level of education or socioeconomic status correlates positively with a better understanding of financial concepts. Likewise, it is evident that better performance in financial knowledge questions increases the accuracy with which individuals estimate future inflation, presumably enabling them to make more suitable consumption decisions for their well-being. However, despite individuals with better knowledge reducing their consumption in high inflation contexts, this is not reflected in an increased use of investment products that would allow them to protect themselves from the loss of purchasing power due to rising prices. The research concludes the importance and urgency of developing policies aimed at increasing economic and financial education, particularly in vulnerable groups, allowing people to save, invest, incur less debt, secure their assets, and thus ensure less poverty and greater equality, contributing to the overall well-being of the population throughout different life cycles.
    Keywords: educación financiera, educación económica, bienestar financiero, alfabetización financiera, inflación, interés compuesto, diversificación de riesgo, capacidad financiera, financial education, economic education, financial well-being, financial literacy, inflation, compound interest, risk, financial capability
    JEL: G50 G51 G53 G59
    Date: 2024–02
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bdr:borrec:1267&r=fle

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