People who are considered a sexual and gender minority (SGM) person identify as a sexual orientation other than heterosexual (e.g., lesbian, gay, bisexual; sexual minority) or whose gender identity does not match their sex assigned at birth (e.g., transgender, nonbinary, queer; gender minority). Much of what researchers know about family finance has been identified based on research focusing on cisgender heterosexual people and operates under the assumption of generalizability. Yet, sexual and gender minority (SGM) couples likely experience important differences when engaging with financial services and professionals. We seek to understand the experiences of SGM people in relationships, who are not traditionally represented in family finance. We focus on expanding our understanding of access and inclusion in financial services and education. Specifically, we examined the research question: What can financial service providers and educators do to support SGM couples and families? Qualitative analysis, specifically deductive thematic analysis, examined responses from 300 SGM respondents in relationships (100 women in relationships with women, 101 men in relationships with men, 99 gender minority people in relationships). Using suggestions directly from SGM people will help financial practitioners better understand and know how to provide more inclusive and effective services to these populations.
Younger people often hear parents or grandparents lamenting about how inexpensive things seemed to be “back in their day.” Gas was only 50 cents, milk was cheaper. Today, the price of consumer goods and the housing market have increased with inflation and economic upheaval compared to previous decades, but unfortunately, wages and purchasing power have not kept up with the demands on our wallets. The economic context of each generation informs their financial attitudes, which impacts behavior and financial outcomes. Throughout this study, we investigate the associations between generational cohort, frugal financial attitudes, and financial well-being. This study includes three research questions: RQ1) How is generational cohort associated with frugal financial attitudes (e.g., setting up emergency funds, spending less than earned, and perceived low debt burden)? RQ2) How is generational cohort associated with financial well-being? RQ3) How are frugal financial attitudes associated with financial well-being? Frugal attitudes positively influence financial well-being across all five generational cohorts. These findings suggest that fostering frugal financial attitudes can serve as protective factors that enhance perceived financial satisfaction and security.
This study tests whether a scarcity mindset is associated with the use of alternative financial services, whether the association is stable above and beyond established predictors of the use of alternative financial services, and whether it differs by household income.
This study investigates the relationship between household debt and perceived financial well-being. Using multivariate analysis over four waves of data from the National Longitudinal Surveys (NLS), findings from this study indicate the significant impact debt can have on the financial well-being of households across America, and that households look to available resources, including income and assets, to manage their debt situation. From a consumer impact vantage point, it is critical to assess the subjective nature of financial well-being through the lens of salient objective financial measures, while integrating individual coping strategies involving resource availability.
Author(s): Tairsa Mathews, Brandon Perry, Stuart Heckman
This study analyzes Consumer Expenditure Survey data from 2004 to 2023 to investigate cohort effects on expenditure in categories strongly associated with present orientation: food away from home, entertainment, alcohol, and tobacco. We use Ordinary Least Squares regression, logistic regression, and Tobit regression models and control for a rich set of individual and household sociodemographic characteristics in the analysis. Our findings reveal generational differences that are neither monotonic nor consistent across all categories. This indicates that present orientation in spending does not simply increase or decrease across generations. Instead, it manifests differently in each cohort depending on cultural norms, economic conditions, and shifting societal values.
This study explored an experimental survey aimed at increasing awareness of spending behaviors through a traditional (control) or well-being (intervention) lens across time, and investigated the relationships between general well-being, financial self-efficacy, financial skill, financial anxiety, and financial well-being in a large sample (N=1,174) of U.S. adults with diverse characteristics, although not nationally representative. The primary data were collected through five surveys using Qualtrics from June 3, 2024, through July 17, 2024. Given extreme attrition, only the data from wave 1 were used, and group differences were not detectable. The intervention result informs future studies regarding attrition rates for personal finance interventions. The wave one cross-sectional data from the full sample yields significant relationships across theoretical constructs. The results combine to indicate that greater general well-being has a consistent and robust relationship with improved financial well-being, with financial skill/efficacy accounting for a future, but not a current, time perspective. However, financial anxiety is more pervasive in that it crosses time perspective dimensions through its relationship with reduced expected future financial security and increased current money management stress.
