Do women have lower levels of financial literacy, or are they opting out? A look at the non-response gender bias in financial literacy measurement
File version
Version of Record (VoR)
Author(s)
de Zwaan, Laura
Johnson, Di
Griffith University Author(s)
Primary Supervisor
Other Supervisors
Editor(s)
Date
Size
File type(s)
Location
Abstract
Men consistently appear to outperform women on standard financial literacy tests. But could the results be because of inherent gender bias in measurement tools? This study investigates the reasons for women selecting the non-response option in financial literacy questions, including numerical self-efficacy, risk aversion and confidence. Our analysis finds evidence that women answer less questions than men. We find that having an engagement with personal finance when school-aged is associated with good financial literacy performance in adulthood, and boys are more interested than girls. These results are important for shaping policy and providing resources that close the gap in measurement and ability.
Journal Title
Financial Services Review
Conference Title
Book Title
Edition
Volume
31
Issue
1
Thesis Type
Degree Program
School
Publisher link
Patent number
Funder(s)
Grant identifier(s)
Rights Statement
Rights Statement
© 2023 Tracey West, Laura de Zwaan, Di Johnson. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Author(s) retain copyright and grant the Journal right of first with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License that allows to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this Journal. This license allows the author to remix, tweak, and build upon the original work non-commercially. The new work(s) must be non-commercial and acknowledge the original work.
Item Access Status
Note
Access the data
Related item(s)
Subject
Household finance and financial literacy
Banking, finance and investment
Persistent link to this record
Citation
West, T; de Zwaan, L; Johnson, D, Do women have lower levels of financial literacy, or are they opting out? A look at the non-response gender bias in financial literacy measurement, Financial Services Review, 2023, 31 (1), pp. 55-71