Financial literacy is commonly defined as the knowledge, skills, and ability to navigate the increasingly complex financial markets, and is considered to empower consumers to make responsible financial decisions. Financial literacy is increasingly promoted as a crucial life skill in the aftermath of global financial crisis by numerous global initiatives and became part and parcel of national strategies of financial inclusion. By utilizing theoretical insights from Michel Foucault’s late work on governmentality, this dissertation analyzes financial literacy education initiatives in Turkey with ethnographic research. Cultural political economy perspective articulated in this dissertation underlines the importance of theorizing the financialized capital accumulation dynamics together with the reshaping of culture and the constitution of financialized subjectivities. It is argued that financial literacy is a “technique of the self” seeking to govern the everyday conduct of subjects in line with the long-term interests of financial capital. Financial literacy curricula provide not only the basic knowledge of finance but also instruct subjects ways to conduct oneself on financial planning, budgeting, debt management, creditworthiness, saving and investment. Financial literacy agenda deepens neo-liberal governmentality with the promotion of entrepreneurial subjectivity and responsibilization of individuals for social risks such as unemployment, economic downturn, and pensions. By problematizing the constitution of financially literate subjectivity and providing an everyday and cultural perspective on financialization, this dissertation contributes to the discipline of International Political Economy. / Dissertation / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

In the wake of recent events, especially the Great Recession of 2007-2009, affecting the economy, resulting in job losses, personal financial distress, and gloomy perceptions of their future well-being, many Americans are concerned about their financial quality of life in retirement. The media is replete with a plethora of advertisements for retirement planning and financial products for an aging population. By 2030, nearly 20 percent of the population of the United States will be 65 or older. This case study was an examination of a group of retirees who are financially secure enough to reside in retirement communities that require prequalification of assets. The study will serve to inform people on the path to retirement of what those who have been successful actually did so that those in the pipeline may take into consideration their actions and avoid acts of commission or omission that might impede or destroy their chances of reaching a financially secure retirement. The study results showed that not only were the participants financially literate, they were planners. It also became apparent that financial literacy was acquired over time and that becoming financially literate and planning for retirement were dynamic processes that were not discrete. Another finding was that although financial literacy may have a positive impact on success in achieving a financially secure retirement, other factors such as world events, self-control, and luck could affect the realization of a retirement that is financially secure. The first-hand qualitative information gathered in the course of this study will enrich comprehension of the scope of the issues of financial literacy and retirement in America and perhaps form the basis of additional academic research. Finally, the conclusions of this study are significant not only for individual prospective retirees, but also for educators, financial industry professionals, and policy-makers as they craft educational programs, construct financial portfolios, and formulate legislation to help ensure the financial security of an ever-growing population of elders. / Ph. D.

Financial responsibility within the United States volleys between the individual and outside agencies frequently; however, the uninformed individual suffers financially as a result. Integrating concepts of personal finance and children's literature together will promote life-sustaining habits of personal finance and will likely lessen the prevalence of a culture that does not stress financial literacy. / Master of Arts

Yes / Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) place considerable focus on women empowerment and access to finance as well. While goal 5 of SDGs targets gender equality and women empowerment, access to finance appears as an enabler of at least eight goals among seventeen SDG goals. Considering significant emphasis both on women empowerment and financial access by the policymakers and multilateral organisations, in this study using India as our country of interest, we examine the relationship between access to finance to women and women empowerment. In this context we also examine whether financial literacy can assist in improving women empowerment and their access to finance. / The full-text of this book chapter will be released for public view at the end of the publisher embargo, 24 months after publication.

The output of this diploma thesis is a teaching material for financial literacy classes at lower secondary schools. The content of the material is consistent with financial literacy standards defined in "Current trends in teaching financial literacy for elementary school 2nd stage". These standards are also implemented in the Framework Educational Program. The material consists of a theoretical background, set of problems and a suggestion of teaching methods.

The aim of this thesis was to examine the financial knowledge of older people as a vulnerable group of the population of the Czech Republic. For the analysis of the survey were selected. Seniors were considered 9 questions investigating their financial literacy. A questionnaire survey was conducted in homes for the elderly and nursing homes in the Czech Budejovice. The survey was a total of 300 respondents.

Ett aktuellt debattämne på den politiska agendan är de ökade samhällsklyftorna som till stor del beror på inkomstskillnader i den svenska befolkningen. Det har visat sig finnas svårigheter för människor att ta beslut på en allt mer komplex finansmarknad med många attribut, som ställer högre krav på människors finansiella kunskapsförmåga för att kunna hantera sin egen privatekonomi. Människor med lägre finansiell kunskapsnivå har till stor del uteslutits och detta har varit mer tydligt för samhällsgrupper med sämre sociala och ekonomiska förhållanden. Tidigare forskning har visat att personer med utländsk bakgrund är en samhällsgrupp som denna problematik berör. Genom en kvalitativ fallstudie, med en socialkonstruktivistisk ansats, i form av fokusgruppsintervjuer med personer med utländsk bakgrund, ämnar denna studie bidra med ökad förståelse för hur denna samhällsgrupp ser på och tänker kring finansiella beslut på finansmarknaden. Studiens teoretiska referensram är baserad på tidigare forskning om personer med utländsk bakgrund, kognitiv förmåga, diskriminering samt forskningsfältet ”financial literacy”. Resultatet visade på att det fanns ett behov av ”financial literacy” bland informanterna, då många ansåg att den befintliga informationen som finns på finansmarknaden var svårtolkad och sätter allt högre krav på människans kognitiva förmåga. Det framgick även att många informanter ur den valda samhällsgruppen i studien “personer med utländskbakgrund” valde att avstå från att investera på finansmarknaden på grund av den risk som är associerad med finansiella investeringar. / A current topic of debate on the political agenda are the increased social gaps, which are largely due to income differences within the Swedish population. There have been difficulties for people to make financial decisions in an increasingly complex financial market with many attributes, which places higher demands on people's financial knowledge to manage their own personal finances. People with lower financial knowledge have largely been excluded and this has been more evident for social groups with poorer social and economic conditions. Previous research has shown that people with a foreign background are a social group affected by this problem. Through a qualitative case study, with a socialconstructivist approach, based on focus group interviews with people from foreign background, this study aims to contribute to greater understanding of how this group of people views and thinks about financial decisions in the financial market. This study's theoretical frame of reference is based on past research about people with foreign backgrounds, cognitive ability, discrimination and the research field of “financial literacy”. The results showed that there was a need for financial literacy among the informants, as many considered that the existing information available in the financial market was difficult to interpret and has higher demands on humans cognitive ability. It was also found that many informants from the chosen social group in this study “people with foreign backgrounds” chose to draw back from investing in the financial market because of the risk associated with financial investments.

The purpose of this convergent mixed method study was to determine whether or not there is a difference in the perceived and actual financial literacy scores of millennials. Exploring the following research questions and hypotheses helped to expand knowledge around actual financial literacy and several other characteristics, including perceived financial literacy, especially among millennials (individuals born between 1981 and 1996): RQ1: What is the difference between millennials' actual and perceived financial literacy scores? RQ2: To what extent do socioeconomic status, gender, and having a bank account predict millennials' financial literacy scores? H0: There is no relationship between millennials' socioeconomic status, gender, banking status and their financial literacy scores. RQ3: What video delivery methods (if any) are millennials using to gain financial literacy knowledge in informal learning environments? Millennial participants (N = 207) were asked to complete a survey. Participants' perceived financial literacy scores were higher than their actual financial literacy scores. While males had higher perceived financial literacy ratings, females accounted for the majority of participants who scored four or above on a 5-point scale for actual financial literacy. Although, the null hypothesis was incorrect, the independent variables used in the ANOVA tables accounted for less than 15% of financial literacy scores. One hundred twenty-one millennials (58.5%) reported viewing a financial video versus 86 (41.5%) who reported not viewing financial videos. Eighty-one percent of participants reported watching financial videos at their homes. To create a lasting impact that can progress financial literacy and informal learning, more knowledge is needed.

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People obtain a university degree in order to improve their future prospects, in particular regarding employment opportunities. A degree in finance does not only fulfill a need in society at large but also for the individuals and their personal finances. We focused on students and alumni at and from Södertörns högskola in order to investigate whether the Bachelor of finance degree influenced the respondents’ financial decisions and behaviour regarding savings and investment. We investigated whether savings and investment increased as a function of increased knowledge of financial instruments and markets and an understanding of the risk associated with these. The thesis focused mainly on quantitative methods with qualitative elements to elicit a deeper understanding of the respondents’ replies. Data collection was completed through surveys and interviews. The results showed indications of higher level of investments in stocks, bonds and high risk markets as well as statistically significant increases in the propensity to borrow money for investment. No statistically significant difference was detected in the level of pension savings.