Sustainable Financial Education and Consumer Life Satisfaction

Fuzhong Chen,Jingxin Lu,Horlane Bissielou,Wenting Wang,Jiaying Li

doi:10.3390/su12031150

Abstract

Sustainable financial education is defined as the continuous input of money and time on financial knowledge education after formal schooling. The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of sustainable financial education on consumer life satisfaction. Utilizing the dataset of Household Consumer Finance of Chinese Urban Residents in 2012 by the China Financial Research Center of Tsinghua University, the variable of sustainable financial education is constructed through the variables of the necessity of financial education, the money spent on financial education, and the time spent on financial education. To improve the estimation results, order probit regression is utilized. The results indicate that financial education is significantly positive to consumer life satisfaction only for a consumer with higher education. Consumers who regard financial education to be of high necessity will feel more satisfied. The results also show that consumers who spend more money and time on financial education after formal schooling will be more satisfied. Moreover, the sustainable impacts of financial education on consumer life satisfaction are verified. In addition, this study provides empirical evidence that suggests that sustainable financial education positively contributes to consumer life satisfaction. The results have implications for policymakers to take measures in enhancing sustainable financial education to improve consumer life satisfaction.

Highlights

In recent decades, consumer financial education has drawn the attention of consumer financial researchers, policymakers, and practitioners [1,2,3,4]
Sustainable financial education after formal schooling can make consumers rationally participate in the financial market and to promote the healthy development of financial markets and has a positive impact on improving a consumer’s life satisfaction
This study provides empirical evidence suggesting that accepting financial education, especially when the consumers already have a high level of education, is positively associated with greater consumer life satisfaction

Summary

Introduction

Consumer financial education has drawn the attention of consumer financial researchers, policymakers, and practitioners [1,2,3,4]. Improving the degree of consumer financial literacy and their degree of financial capability through sustainable financial education is believed to play a significant role in enhancing consumer life satisfaction [5,6]. Life satisfaction is defined as a comprehensive psychological indicator that measures the quality of life of a person [7]. It can be divided into two kinds, namely, general life satisfaction and special life satisfaction [8]. This study differs from previous research in that it focuses on the roles of sustainable financial education in a special domain of consumer life satisfaction

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Results

Conclusion