Financial education affects financial knowledge and downstream behaviors

Tim Kaiser, Annamaria Lusardi (), Lukas Menkhoff and Carly Urban

Journal of Financial Economics, 2022, vol. 145, issue 2, 255-272

Abstract: We study the rapidly growing literature on the causal effects of financial education programs in a meta-analysis of 76 randomized experiments with a total sample size of over 160,000 individuals. Many of these experiments are published in top economics and finance journals. The evidence shows that financial education programs have, on average, positive causal treatment effects on financial knowledge and downstream financial behaviors. Treatment effects are economically meaningful in size, similar to those realized by educational interventions in other domains, and robust to accounting for publication bias in the literature. We also discuss the cost-effectiveness of financial education interventions.

Keywords: Financial education; Financial literacy; Financial behavior; RCT; Meta-analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D14 G53 I21 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (60)

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Related works:
Working Paper: Financial education affects financial knowledge and downstream behaviors (2020)
Working Paper: Financial Education Affects Financial Knowledge and Downstream Behaviors (2020)
Working Paper: Financial Education Affects Financial Knowledge and Downstream Behaviors (2020)
Working Paper: Financial Education Affects Financial Knowledge and Downstream Behaviors (2020)
Working Paper: Financial Education Affects Financial Knowledge and Downstream Behaviors (2020)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jfinec:v:145:y:2022:i:2:p:255-272

DOI: 10.1016/j.jfineco.2021.09.022

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