Investigation of Financial Literacy and Money Attitudes Among First-Year Undergraduate Accounting Students: A Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy-Based Coaching Intervention

Abstract

As soon as they are admitted to a university, most students become responsible for their own finances, but because of a lack of parental supervision, they are more inclined to spend than to manage their money. A study of first-year undergraduate accounting students was conducted to examine the effects of rational emotive behavior therapy-based coaching (REBT-based coaching) intervention on their financial literacy and money attitudes. Thirty first-year undergraduates studying accounting at Nigerian public universities participated in this two-group randomized trial. About 15 first-year undergraduate accounting students participated in the online REBT-based coaching group, while 15 first-year undergraduate accounting students participated in the face-to-face control group. A repeated measures analysis of variance was performed on the study data at .05 probability level. The study found that the online REBT-based coaching intervention significantly improved the financial literacy and money attitudes of first-year undergraduate accounting students in a similar way to face-to-face REBT-based coaching intervention. The follow-up results for the online REBT-based coaching intervention 1 month later showed a similar trend of increasing students’ financial literacy and money attitude scores similar to what was observed in the face-to-face coaching group. There was no significant difference between students in the online and face-to-face modes regarding satisfaction with REBT-based coaching interventions they received. As a result of the findings, the researchers propose developing coaching approaches that can help students gain insight into their financial actions and knowledge, which will likely improve financial literacy and money attitudes in the future.