Adaptation and Validation of the Economic and Financial Literacy Test for Chilean secondary students / Adaptación y validación del Test de Alfabetización Económica y Financiera en estudiantes secundarios chilenos

Abstract This article presents the results of the analysis of psychometric properties of the Economic and Financial Literacy Test (TAEF-E) after its application in 811 high school students from nine educational establishments in the cities of Santiago (48.6%) and Temuco (51.4%) and whose sample had a 52.5% participation of women. For the study, three scales were applied: TAEF-E, the Scale of Susceptibility to the influence of peers in consumption and the Attitude Scale towards materialism for adolescents, managing to demonstrate optimal levels of internal consistency, adequate factor validity with a one-dimensional structure and significant correlations with sociodemographic and attitudinal variables, which allow to ratify as a whole, the validity and reliability of TAEF-E as an instrument to measure economic and financial literacy in secondary school students.

Resumen Este artículo presenta los resultados del análisis de propiedades psicométricas del Test de Alfabetización Económica y Financiera (TAEF-E) tras su aplicación en 811 estudiantes de secundaria de nueve establecimientos educativos de las ciudades de Santiago (48.6%) y Temuco (51.4%) y cuya muestra tuvo una participación del 52.5% de mujeres. Para el estudio, se aplicaron tres escalas: El TAEF-E, la Escala de Susceptibilidad a la influencia de los pares en el consumo y la Escala de Actitud hacia el materialismo para adolescentes, logrando demostrar niveles óptimos de consistencia interna, adecuada validez factorial con una estructura unidimensional y correlaciones significativas con variables sociodemográficas y actitudinales, que permiten ratificar en su conjunto, la validez y confiabilidad del TAEF-E como instrumento para medir la alfabetización económica y financiera en estudiantes de secundaria.

Características emprendedoras personales y alfabetización económica: Una comparación entre estudiantes universitarios del sur de Chile / Personal entreprenuerial characteristics and economic literacy: A comparision between university students of southern Chile

El objetivo de la investigación que se informa fue comparar las características emprendedoras personales y la alfabetización económica en estudiantes de dos facultades de una universidad pública ubicada en el sur de Chile. El diseño fue cuantitativo, no experimental, con un alcance descriptivo comparativo. Se aplicaron el Test de Características Emprendedoras Personales (PECs) y el Test de Alfabetización Económica para Adultos (TAE-A) a 200 estudiantes de las facultades de Ingeniería, Ciencias y Administración (FICA) y de Educación, Ciencias Sociales y Humanidades (FESCH). En primer lugar se realizó un análisis factorial exploratorio del Test PECs, para luego caracterizar los niveles de alfabetización económica y comparar los resultados de ambas escalas y sus dimensiones entre los estudiantes de ambas facultades. Los resultados sugieren una nueva estructura de nueve dimensiones para el PECs. Ambas facultades muestran un bajo nivel de alfabetización económica, y al compararlas se encontró que los estudiantes de FICA presentan puntuaciones más elevadas en las siguientes dimensiones del Test PECs: anticipación del riesgo, persistencia y confianza, autoexigencia y calidad, búsqueda de control y excelencia, propositividad y previsión del futuro. De manera similar, estos estudiantes también obtuvieron puntuaciones más elevadas en la dimensión de Economía Internacional del TAE-A. Los resultados permiten concluir la necesidad de hacer una revisión del Test PECs antes de administrarlo en entornos profesionales, como así también revisar los planes de estudios de carreras universitarias cuyo objetivo explícito es la formación de profesionales emprendedores, de tal manera que incorporen de manera efectiva contenidos y competencias vinculadas al emprendimiento y a la alfabetización económica.

Entrepreneurship is defined as the capacity to detect and act upon economic opportunities in the environment, to gain an individual or collective benefit. Interest in this subject has led to relate this construct with individual and social variables. However, few studies have focused on the characteristics of entrepreneurs and their level of knowledge about the economic world, known as economic literacy. This is relevant given that entrepreneurship cannot be solely understood from the concept of opportunity or the traits of the entrepreneur, and instead these elements must be understood in their interaction. From this point of view, economic literacy is fundamental. Understanding the economic world allows the entrepreneur to better manage resources and projects and to take informed decisions about daily economic problems. Following principles from Economic Psychology, this research aims to compare the personal entrepreneurial characteristics and the economic literacy of Chilean university students of two faculties. The design of this study is quantitative, non-experimental, with a descriptive scope. The Test of Entrepreneurial Personal Characteristics (PECs) and the Test of Economic Literacy for Adults (TAE-A) and was answered by 200 students from the faculties of Engineering, Science and Management (FICA) and Education, Social Sciences and Humanities (FESCH). A convenience sample was chosen, which comprised 57.5% men and 42.5% women, with a mean age of 22 years. The test PECs measures 10 dimensions, related to the three basic elements of entrepreneurship: innovation, risk-taking and proactivity. The TAE-A measures knowledge on General Economy, Microeconomics, Macroeconomics and International Economy. An exploratory factor analysis was conducted over the PECs Test, and a following Student's t Test to compare the scores between students from both faculties. The exploratory factor analysis of the test PECs suggests a new nine-dimensional structure for the Chilean student population, thus changing the original structure and categories of the test. Both faculties showed a low level of economic knowledge. When comparing both faculties in the PECs test, significant differences were found in six out the nine dimensions, that is, the FICA students presented significantly higher scores for the following personal entrepreneurial characteristics: Risk anticipation, Persistence and confidence, Self-demand and quality, Search for control and excellence, Propositivity and Foresight. Similarly, FICA students had higher levels of economic knowledge of International Economy, although no significant differences were found when comparing the overall performance on economic literacy. Neither faculty reached the degree of economic literacy expected for this education level. This should be a cause of concern because previous research asserts that a deficit in economic literacy in adults puts them at risk of compulsive economic behavior, consumerism, overspending and debt. In conclusion, although the emergent structure of the PECs test may be useful, a confirmatory factor analysis and further studies of its psychometric properties are suggested for its use in research and assessment of interventions on entrepreneurship in university populations. These results highlight the importance of strengthening economic literacy and the promotion of entrepreneurial personal characteristics, as part of the personal and professional development of university students with emphasis on those careers that are explicitly linked to entrepreneurship. Limitations of the study are the convenience sampling method used and the lack of exploration of other sources of economic knowledge outside academia and also, the design and scope of this study does not allow to conclude if the differences found are due to the learning inside the university context or if students with different profiles are drawn to different careers and faculties. Drawing from both findings and limitations, suggestions for future research in the subject of economic literacy and entrepreneurship and related issues are outlined.

Incidencia de las estrategias de alfabetización económica de los padres en el ámbito familiar sobre el desarrollo del pensamiento económico de los hijos / Influence of Economical Literacy strategies of Parents in the Family Field on Children Economical Thought Development

Desde una perspectiva constructivista, se pretende determinar la incidencia de las estrategias de alfabetización económica, reconocida por los niños y utilizada por sus padres para alfabetizarlos económicamente, sobre el desarrollo de su pensamiento económico y la incidencia conjunta del nivel socioeconómico, la estructura familiar y la edad de los niños. Para ello, se escogió una muestra al azar de 151 niños escolarizados, entre los 10 y 14 años de edad, de la ciudad de Barranquilla, a los que se les aplicó una guía de entrevista y el test de alfabetización económica para niños. Los resultados del modelo de regresión lineal múltiple con variables dummy muestran un incremento de la comprensión del mundo económico conforme los niños avanzan en edad y sus padres utilizan un mayor número de estrategias de alfabetización económica, y una menor probabilidad de avanzar en el desarrollo de su pensamiento económico si pertenecen a nivel socioeconómico bajo.

From a constructivist perspective, the present study seek to determine the impact of economic literacy strategies recognized by children as used by their parents to orient them economically about the development of their economic thought and the joint effect of socioeconomic status, family structure and age of children. To accomplish these goals, it was selected a random sample of 151 children who assist to school regularly. They are between 10 and 14 years old in the city of Barranquilla. During the study, it was applied an interview guide and the test of economic literacy to these children. The results of multiple linear regression model with dummy variables show that when children get older, they present an increased understanding of the economic world and their parents used a greater number of economic literacy strategies and less likely to advance in the development of their economic thought if they belong to low socioeconomic status.

La comprensión del funcionamiento bancario en adolescentes chilenos: un estudio de Psicología Económica / The understanding of the banking operation in Chilean adolescents: a study of Economic Psychology

La comprensión del mundo del dinero y de los mecanismos de crédito y ahorro constituyen prerrequisitos indispensables para el desarrollo de conductas económicas racionales y para evitar niveles excesivos de endeudamiento. En este marco es indispensable que los jóvenes adolescentes adquieran una alfabetización económica y una alfabetización financiera que los preparen para su inserción en el mundo del trabajo y la toma de decisiones económicas. El propósito de este trabajo, desarrollado en el ámbito de la Psicología Económica y a partir de un marco cognitivo / evolutivo, es describir el proceso de desarrollo de la comprensión del funcionamiento bancario en adolescentes chilenos. Los participantes fueron 159 adolescentes escolarizados de 14 a 18 años, balanceados por sexo, pertenecientes a los niveles socioeconómicos alto, medio y bajo y residentes tanto de ciudades multifinancieras, como de ciudades con funcionamiento financiero limitado. Como instrumento de recolección de datos se utilizó una entrevista clínica piagetiana que interrogaba a los jóvenes acerca de las funciones del banco, la forma de acceder a créditos, el ahorro y la relación entre tasas de interés, crédito y ahorro. Los resultados indicaron mayores niveles de comprensión en los sujetos pertenecientes a niveles socioeconómicos medio y alto, residentes en ciudades multifinancieras, y una pobre comprensión en los jóvenes de nivel socioeconómico bajo, residentes en ciudades con sistema financiero limitado. Se discuten estos resultados considerando la creciente complejidad que el mercado impone a las personas como producto de la globalización y la necesidad de líneas educativas en el ámbito financiero y de educación para el consumo en la enseñanza formal de los niños y jóvenes.

The understanding of the world of money and the mechanisms of credit and saving constitute prerequirements indispensable for the development of rational economic behaviours and to avoid excessive levels of indebtedness, this problem moreover being considered urgent in expanding economies. In this frame it is crucial that the adolescents acquire an economic and financial literacy that prepares them for their insertion in the world of work and economic decision making. Economic literacy refers to the acquisition, done by children, adolescents and adults, of knowledge, beliefs, values, attitudes and behaviours related to the use of money, the consumption of goods and services, and the performance in the daily economic world. Economic literacy requires a personal financial literacy defined as the ability to read, to analyze, to understand, to handle and to communicate personal financial situations that affect personal finances and the capacity to make financial decisions considering the variables existing in the economic context. The intention of this research, developed from an Economic Psychology approach, was to describe the development process of the understanding of banking operation in Chilean adolescents. Participants were 159 teenagers enrolled in school with an age range from 14 to 18 years old, balanced by sex and belonging to socioeconomic high, average and low levels, which were divided in two subsamples according to if they were residents of multifinancial cities or financially limited functioning cities. As the data collection instrument, a piagetian clinical interview was used to interrogate the young people about the functions of a bank, the form to accede to credits, savings and the relation between interest rates, credit and saving. The results indicate greater levels of understanding in subjects belonging to average and high socioeconomic levels and residents of multifinancial cities, and a poor understanding in the young people of low socioeconomic level who reside in cities with a limited financial system. Both the qualitative and quantitative analysis of information, indicate that there is a general agreement between the present results and those obtained in previous studies with adolescents in other cultural contexts. One can observe that although an important percentage of subjects have a suitable general understanding of the rules of banking operation, there still is an important number of adolescents who do not obtain this understanding or obtain it only partially. Even in advanced understanding subjects, there is a persistence of difficulties in the ability to relate the action and impact of diverse economic variables (for example, interest rates, internal economic situation of the country, inflation and global economic context variables), which denotes, on the one hand, an insufficient baggage of specific economic knowledge and on the other, the difficulty to think about systems. It is important to consider the influence of the social, cultural and economic context in the comprehension of the function of the bank as a financial intermediary and in the development of consumer behavior. The lack of economic literacy found in the sample indicates the urgent task of preparing our young people for the comprehension of and efficient performance in the economic world, providing them with the information and strategies necessary for decision making as consumers and plaintiffs of financial resources, as a way of contributing to a fairer society and an equitable development. For this purpose, the incorporation of general economic literacy and specifically a suitable financial literacy in the formal education is very relevant.