Extending financial literacy to insurance literacy: a survey approach

We extend behavioural research in investment and retirement savings to insurance, by investigating factors that may influence individuals’ insurance decision making. These factors include financial literacy, specialist insurance education and some behavioural biases. Based on a definition of insurance literacy that requires both having, and applying insurance knowledge, we find from a survey of postgraduate students that financial literacy does not necessarily translate to insurance literacy, whereas more specialised education can improve insurance literacy. Results also indicate specialist education potentially reduces susceptibility to anchoring effects.     

Financial well-being amongst elderly Australians: the role of consumption patterns and financial literacy

Consumption behaviour and financial literacy are primary factors in determining the financial well-being of retirees. This paper uses an existing financial literacy index to examine how financial literacy directly, and via an interaction with consumption patterns, affects elderly Australians’ financial well-being. We find that most elderly Australians hold an optimistic attitude towards their financial situation, and those who are relatively older, more educated, healthier and outright homeowners are more likely to report higher levels of financial well-being. Financial literacy significantly improves financial well-being. It also helps strengthen the positive effects of meeting more of non-essential consumption needs on financial well-being.     

Financial literacy and the demand for financial advice

The low level of financial literacy across households suggests that they are at risk of making suboptimal financial decisions. In this paper, we analyze the effect of investors’ financial literacy on their decision to demand professional, non-independent advice. We find that non-independent advisors are not sufficient to alleviate the problem of low financial literacy. The investors with a low level of financial literacy are less likely to consult an advisor, but they delegate their portfolio choice more often or do not invest in risky assets at all. We explain this evidence with a highly stylized model of strategic interaction between investors and better informed advisors with conflicts of interests. The advisors provide more information to knowledgeable investors, who anticipating this are more likely to consult them.     

金融素养与家庭储蓄率——基于理财规划与借贷约束的解释

金融科技的发展使得人们参与金融市场的门槛与成本迅速降低,金融产品也不断丰富,金融市场参与者的异质性增加,金融素养对家庭金融决策的影响越来越明显。本文研究发现:(1)家庭在安排储蓄与消费时,金融素养有显著影响,金融素养与家庭储蓄率呈倒U型关系。(2)理财规划和借贷约束是影响家庭储蓄率上升的两个渠道。(3)金融素养由低逐渐升高时,家庭的理财规划意识增强,通过提高储蓄率来保障资金充足。当金融素养增加到一定程度,理财规划意识优化资产配置的作用增强,抑制消费的作用减弱,同时借贷约束缓解会帮助家庭增加消费。本文的发现有助于厘清家庭储蓄率差异的成因,对提升居民福利,增强金融教育政策的针对性,有积极意义。     

Incorporating financial literacy into the accounting curriculum

Financial literacy education, or the lack thereof, has received much attention in recent years. Over the past two decades, we have witnessed the dot com bubble, corporate scandals that stirred the market, and a large recession. Because many individuals turn to accountants for financial advice, it is now more important than ever for professionals to possess a strong foundation in basic financial literacy to better serve their clients. While the responsibility of financial literacy education does not lie with one institution or one individual, multiple efforts have been put in place to provide financial literacy education to the public. The purpose of this paper is to describe how financial literacy education was successfully incorporated into the accounting classroom to provide tomorrow’s professionals with a strong foundation in financial literacy.     

Teaching teenagers in finance: Does it work?

Many initiatives worldwide aim at improving financial literacy through targeted education programs, yet there is little evidence regarding their effectiveness. We examine the impact of a short financial education program on teenagers in German high schools. Our findings reveal that the training program significantly increases teenagers’ interest in financial matters and their financial knowledge, especially their ability to properly assess the riskiness of assets. Behaviorally, we observe a decrease in the prevalence of self-reported impulse purchases, but at the same time find no evidence of a significant increase in savings.     

传统家庭观念抑制了城镇居民商业养老保险参与吗？———基于金融信任与金融素养视角的实证分析

随着我国人口老龄化的加速和金融产品的不断创新,以商业养老保险为代表的个人养老金逐步成长为我国养老金体系的第三大支柱,为解决养老问题提供了重要渠道。但现阶段我国城镇居民的商业养老保险参与度不足,养老金融市场发展缓慢。区别于既有研究的经济理性视角,本研究从影响金融发展的文化观念视角为这一“有限参与”现象提供新的理论解析。利用CHFS 2015数据进行实证分析,本文发现“养儿防老”等传统家庭文化观念会抑制我国城镇居民的商业养老保险参与,这一影响在控制了内生性后依然显著;进一步研究发现,传统家庭观念(养儿防老等)会削弱居民的金融信任,减少居民对金融信息的关注,不利于居民金融素养的提升,进而降低其商业养老保险参与度;异质性分析表明,传统家庭观念(养儿防老等)对商业养老保险参与的负向影响在中西部地区和受教育水平偏低的群体中更加突出。本研究揭示了影响居民商业养老保险参与和我国养老金融市场发展的深层文化因素,对推进我国多支柱养老保险体系的建设也具有政策启示意义。     

Teaching financial literacy in a co-curricular service-learning model

The current economic environment has brought to light the financial literacy epidemic in this country. A lack of personal financial education has contributed to the increase in consumer credit debt, a trend evident for many college students who often have significant credit card debt. One way to combat this problem is through financial literacy education. This paper describes a service-learning project implemented through a Beta Alpha Psi chapter, which fulfills the educational objectives of the accounting curriculum and addresses an educational need. The project provides reciprocity of learning between members of Beta Alpha Psi and their audience, college underclassmen. The results indicate that the project is successful in educating both presenters and audience members on basic financial knowledge as well as developing technical and communication skills of Beta Alpha Psi members. The project outline presented in this paper provides a framework for others to use.     

金融教育是有效的吗?

2008年国际金融危机以来,金融教育备受关注。然而,学术界对于其效果并未达成共识。本文选取清华大学中国金融研究中心2012年调查数据,辅助以CHFS2015年调查数据,利用倾向得分匹配法(PSM)和工具变量法(IV)等模型实证考察了金融教育对我国居民金融行为的影响效果,研究发现：相对于未接受过金融教育的家庭,接受过金融教育家庭资产组合的分散化程度更佳、夏普比率更高;他们更有可能制定理财规划,且制定理财规划的年限更长;当权益受损时,他们更懂得寻求帮助。进一步地,随着社会互动水平的提高,金融教育的优化效果会更大。因此,在构建现代金融体系背景下,应扎实推进金融教育普及工作,全面提升居民金融素养,助力实现共同富裕。同时,针对群体互动特征实施更加多样化的金融教育方案,不断强化金融教育的总体效果。     

Depositors’ trust: Some empirical evidence from Indonesia

We develop a comprehensive index, based on Robbins and Judge’s (2008) five dimensions of trust, to measure depositors’ trust in individual banks as well as trust in the banking industry and financial safety net. Using a survey of 992 retail depositors in Indonesia, we find that trust in individual banks where depositors save their money is greater than trust in the overall banking industry and financial safety net. We also find that depositors’ trust is affected by personal characteristics—for instance, women and older depositors have relatively less trust. Depositors tend to put their trust in individual banks and the financial system if they have greater trust in information conveyed by the government. Religious and economic values have positive effects on depositors’ trust at both the micro and macro levels. Our results also document that risk-taking behavior is positively associated with depositors’ trust. Furthermore, we find that more-educated depositors have significantly less trust. This finding might imply that the erosion of market discipline by depositors in a country with relatively generous deposit insurance, such as Indonesia, can be mitigated through greater financial literacy.     

金融知识与小微企业创新意识、创新活力——基于中国小微企业调查(CMES)的实证研究

根据人力资本理论的解释,金融知识体现了小微企业主对经济金融相关信息的认知与决策、以及使用正规金融工具与服务的能力,因此将作用于小微企业的创新意识与创新活力。实证结果发现,金融知识显著提升了小微企业的创新意识,表现为更重视创新的必要性与员工的创新能力,也有效改善了创新活力。这对相关政府部门与金融机构进一步普及金融知识与开展面向小微企业主的培训,提供了积极的数据支持。进一步分析表明,金融知识通过市场认知机制与信贷约束机制分别作用于创新意识与创新活力。在市场化高、非国有经济发展好、金融市场化高的地区,小微企业的创新活力强而创新意识不强,金融知识的作用主要在于提升创新意识,即提升市场认知机制发挥作用;而在市场化低、非国有经济发展差、金融市场化低的地区,小微企业的创新意识强而创新活力不强,金融知识的作用主要在于提升创新活力,即缓解需求抑制型信贷约束的机制发挥作用。     

Students' Perceptions of a Scaffolded Approach to Learning Financial Planning: An Empirical Study

In the aftermath of the global financial crisis (GFC), one understandable area of scrutiny and pressure for reform is the educational background and professionalism of personal financial advisers. This Australian study reports on a three-year investigation into students' perceptions of ‘scaffolded’ instruction in financial planning. The scaffolded approach was used to assist learning in areas that previously had caused difficulty. The results indicate that students perceived the scaffolded tasks to be valuable learning experiences which increased their appreciation of the skills and knowledge required by financial advisers. Although students may bring different frames of reference to their learning, and the positiveness of perceived value of scaffolded instruction may vary between different demographic groupings, scaffolding techniques are shown to provide strong potential to assist university educators and their students in financial planning.     

高校财务绩效评价管理与实证分析

高校财务绩效评价是运用科学、规范的绩效评价方法,对高校财务活动进行分析评价,为高校管理层提供决策依据.本文结合新形势下高校特点制定了财务绩效评价原则,详细介绍了高校财务绩效评价指标体系的构建,并进行实证分析.     

高校人才财务激励初探

现有的高校人才激励体系往往注重于教师,而忽略学生这一重要人才资源。文章在界定高校人才财务激励相关概念的基础上,重点进行了高校人才财务激励体系设计。从个人激励和团队激励两大方面建立了较系统的财务激励模型。个人激励又包括了教师和学生两个具体方面。文章设计的财务量化激励体系,可以为高校人才财务激励提供理论和实务的指导。     

数字金融对家庭金融资产配置的影响研究

摘 要：随着科技进步和社会发展,数字金融作为一种新的金融形态,为家庭金融资产配置提供了更多的选择和便利。本文基于家庭金融资产配置理论详细阐述了家庭金融资产面临的三大困境：信息有限性、金融素养有限性和金融接触有限性,得出数字金融在一定程度上能够正向推动家庭金融资产配置。基于此,提出持续推进数字金融的建设与发展、提升居民的金融素养和加强数字化信息的监管,以期进一步优化我国家庭金融资产配置结构。     

Financial literacy and its consequences: Evidence from Russia during the financial crisis

The ability of consumers to make informed financial decisions improves their ability to develop sound personal finance. This paper uses a panel data set from Russia, an economy in which household debt has grown at an astounding rate, to examine the importance of financial literacy and its effects on behavior. The paper studies both the financial and real consequences of financial illiteracy. Even though consumer borrowing increased very rapidly in Russia, only 41% of respondents demonstrate an understanding of interest compounding and only 46% can answer a simple question about inflation. Financial literacy is positively related to participation in financial markets and negatively related to the use of informal sources of borrowing. Moreover, individuals with higher financial literacy are significantly less likely to report experiencing a negative income shock during 2009 and have greater availability of unspent income and higher spending capacity. The relationship between financial literacy and availability of unspent income is higher in 2009, suggesting that financial literacy may better equip individuals to deal with macroeconomic shocks.     

The determinants of recovery from the Black Saturday bushfire: demographic factors,behavioural characteristics and financial literacy

We investigate the contribution of demographic factors, behavioural characteristics and financial literacy to recovery from the financial losses inflicted by the Black Saturday bushfire. Behavioural characteristics (such as overconfidence, self-serving and loss aversion biases) in conjunction with bushfire survivors’ knowledge of financial indicators are used to determine recovery time. Data are collected through in-depth interviews with bushfire survivors, academics and experts in natural disasters. The results show that demographic, behavioural and financial literacy factors have the potential to enhance the recovery process.     

个人金融信息保护及监管研究 ——基于金融集团经营模式视角

近年来,我国金融综合经营趋势日益明显,金融集团业务具有内部关联性、隐蔽性等特点,金融集团为减少成本,增强竞争力,利用控股优势,在集团内部共享客户信息成为一种常态,但却呈现出一种无监管的状态。金融集团个人金融信息保护既存在一般金融机构在个人金融信息保护方面显现的共性问题,还存在集团模式下所引发的特殊问题,究其原因,主要在于法律法规缺位、监管不力、金融机构自律不够等。本文针对这些问题,提出了构建我国金融集团个人金融信息保护框架的构想。     

An intersectional approach to evaluating consumer financial literacy

This study applies a novel approach to explore consumer financial literacy—the necessary skills and knowledge to make personal financial decisions—across different demographic groups. Rather than exploring demographic variables independently of each other, an intersectional approach is employed to identify the most critical and vulnerable consumer groups in light of financial literacy. A survey of 1047 respondents from a panel of consumers residing in the United States demonstrates that identifying the most critical and vulnerable consumer groups is achieved using an intersectional approach. For example, although we find Generation Y exhibits lower financial literacy compared with previous generations, by examining the demographic variables simultaneously, we find that Generation Y females who are members of ethnical minorities are at the greatest risk of being financially vulnerable. Implications for research and financial literacy programs are discussed.     

Financial literacy and financial literacy programmes in Australia

Financial services markets require consumers to be more financially literate if they are to manage their finances effectively. Consequently, there have been an increasing number of attempts to measure financial literacy, as variously defined, and in response to observed deficiencies in financial literacy, an expanding number of financial literacy programmes implemented worldwide, not least in Australia. The purpose of this article is twofold. First, review the existing evidence on the level of financial literacy in Australia, along with the posited determinants and potential impacts on consumers and the marketing of financial services. Second, discuss the financial literacy programmes currently in place in Australia aimed at increasing the level of financial literacy across the population as a whole and in specific groups set in place by government, industry, community and workplace initiatives. The article includes brief critiques of the process of measuring, assessing and understanding financial literacy as it stands and the purpose, design and evaluation of the financial literacy programmes currently in place.