Consumer Knowledge and Financial Decisions: Lifespan Perspectives (International Series on Consumer Science)

There has been an increasing recognition that financial knowledge (i.e., literacy) is lacking across the population. Moreover, there is recognition that this lack of knowledge poses real problems as credit, mortgages, health insurance, retirement benefits, and savings and investment decisions become increasingly complex. __Financial Decisions Across the Lifespan__ brings together the work of scholars from various disciplines (family and consumer sciences, economics, law, finance, sociology, and public policy) to provide a broad range of perspectives on financial knowledge, financial decisions, and policies. For consistency across the volume each chapter follows a similar format: (1) what individuals know or need to know (2) how what they know or need to know affects financial decisions and outcomes (3) ways in which policies or programs or financial innovations can enhance their knowledge, or decisions, or outcomes. Contributors will provide both new and existing research to create a valuable picture of the state of financial literacy and how it can be improved. "It's no secret that financial literacy skills are crucial to consumers' lives: between today's complex picture regarding credit and mortgages and the many changes in health insurance and pension programs, failure to follow the money can be devastating. But not all consumers learn the skills--and not all experts agree on a definition for financial literacy. Covering a wide range of perspectives including family/consumer science, law, sociology, and public policy as well as finance and economics, Consumer Knowledge and Financial Decisions offers an accurate picture of American financial literacy and sets out real-world steps toward its improvement. The book starts by tackling methodological challenges to measuring financial competence, and takes a developmental approach to decision-making, such as encouraging responsibility in school children, reducing risky credit behaviors in young adults, and navigating Social Security and Medicare issues in elders. Each chapter focuses on what individuals need to know about a subject, the relationship of that knowledge to financial security, and programs that can improve decision-making or outcomes in that area. Among the topics covered: Cognitive development and children's financial understanding; Financial education for college students; Homebuyer counseling for diverse buyers; Debtors' assessment of bankruptcy education; Stock market investing: lessons from history; Financial preparedness for long-term care needs. This combination of timely data and practical ideas makes Consumer Knowledge and Financial Decisions a vital resource for a vital resource for professors, students, and policy analysts who study financial decisions."--Publisher's website Front Matter....Pages i-xiii Front Matter....Pages 1-1 Coming to Terms with Financial Literacy....Pages 3-13 Cultivating Financial Mindfulness: A Dual-Process Theory....Pages 15-27 Cognitive Development and Children’s Understanding of Personal Finance....Pages 29-47 Financial Education for College Students....Pages 49-66 The Current State of Financial Education in the US: How is Higher Education Helping?....Pages 67-75 An Overview of Contemporary Financial Education Initiatives Aimed at Minority Populations....Pages 77-97 Front Matter....Pages 99-99 Credit Cards as a Market Instrument: Consumer Understanding and Use....Pages 101-111 Financial Education, Financial Knowledge, and Risky Credit Behavior of College Students....Pages 113-128 Charging Ahead: An Exploratory Study of Financial Decision-Making among Millennial Consumers....Pages 129-144 Pre-purchase Homebuyer Education and Counseling: Diverse Strategies for Diverse Homebuyers....Pages 145-164 The Role of Default Counseling for Mortgage Borrowers in Financial Distress....Pages 165-182 Nontraditional Mortgage Products: Innovative or Toxic?....Pages 183-195 Debtors’ Assessments of Bankruptcy Financial Education....Pages 197-214 Front Matter....Pages 215-215 Social Security Knowledge....Pages 217-237 Financial Preparedness for Long-Term Care Needs in Old Age....Pages 239-253 The Impact of Numeracy on Medicare Part D Insurance Choice in Older Adults....Pages 255-267 Target-Date Mutual Funds....Pages 269-283 Measuring the Performance of Life-Cycle Asset Allocation....Pages 285-301 Stock Market Investing: Lessons from History....Pages 303-313 Individual Investments in Higher Education....Pages 315-330 Back Matter....Pages 331-342 Annotation There has been an increasing recognition that financial knowledge (i.e., literacy) is lacking across the population. Moreover, there is recognition that this lack of knowledge poses real problems as credit, mortgages, health insurance, retirement benefits, and savings and investment decisions become increasingly complex. Financial Decisions Across the Lifespan brings together the work of scholars from various disciplines (family and consumer sciences, economics, law, finance, sociology, and public policy) to provide a broad range of perspectives on financial knowledge, financial decisions, and policies. For consistency across the volume each chapter follows a similar format: (1) what individuals know or need to know (2) how what they know or need to know affects financial decisions and outcomes (3) ways in which policies or programs or financial innovations can enhance their knowledge, or decisions, or outcomes. Contributors will provide both new and existing research to create a valuable picture of the state of financial literacy and how it can be improved There has been an increasing recognition that financial knowledge (i.e., literacy) is lacking across the population. Moreover, there is recognition that this lack of knowledge poses real problems as credit, mortgages, health insurance, retirement benefits, and savings and investment decisions become increasingly complex. "Financial Decisions Across the Lifespan" brings together the work of scholars from various disciplines (family and consumer sciences, economics, law, finance, sociology, and public policy) to provide a broad range of perspectives on financial knowledge, financial decisions, and policies. For consistency across the volume, each chapter follows a similar format: what individuals know or need to know; how what they know or need to know affects financial decisions and outcomes; and, ways in which policies or programs or financial innovations can enhance their knowledge, or decisions, or outcomes. Contributors will provide both new and existing research to create a valuable picture of the state of financial literacy and how it can be improved