Family Matters: Examine the Role of Family Financial Socialization to Improve Consumer Financial Well-Being

This paper compares family financial socialization with school financial education in their roles to improve consumer financial well-being. Using a national sample of US adult respondents (at the age of 18 and above) from the 2016 National Financial Well-Being Survey, this study proposes a structural equation model. It shows that family socialization and school education play equally important and distinctively separate roles in elevating financial well-being. Family socialization functions through a mediating factor in helping people cultivate good financial habits in saving, planning, and budgeting. This study contributes to the research of the direct and indirect relationship between family financial socialization, financial literacy, financial habits, and financial well-being.