THE ROLE OF EARLY FINANCIAL EDUCATION IN PROMOTING FINANCIAL LITERACY: A REVIEW OF EARLY FINANCIAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS

Financial literacy is a necessary life skill for today's more complex financial environment, but there exist prevalent knowledge gaps among a number of different demographic and socioeconomic groups. The current systematic review seeks to critically appraise the effectiveness of numerous financial education programs in promoting financial literacy outcomes and aggregating findings from various studies and types of approaches to deliver financial education. Through critical review of literature available, this review deconstructs significant factors that account for successful financial education interventions and delves into the interaction of educational interventions with observable improvement in financial knowledge, attitudes, and behavior. The review spans varied types of programs such as school-based, workplace, community-based, and web-based programs. Evidence indicates that personal finance education programs demonstrate promising outcomes on knowledge gains but far fewer on behavior change. Programs that incorporate experiential practice, content that addresses the targeted audience, and support systems have been found to be more effective than lecture-based programs. Transfer and sustainability of gains into routine practice continue to pose challenges to educators and policymakers in spite of the efforts. Evidence shows effective programs are culturally appropriate, address concerns of individual demographics, and offer actionable tools applicable in the short term. The review also shows primary areas of long-term follow-up studies as well as the need for better experimental designs to cast more light on the causal connections between education and financial outcomes. These findings shed light on how to best structure and implement financial education.