ABOUT THE BOOK

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 tacking methodological challenges to measuring financial competence, and takes a development 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 elder. 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 professors, students, and policy analysts who study financial decisions.