La importancia de la educación financiera en la toma de decisiones financieras. Un enfoque desde la economía popular y solidaria en Cuenca

Abstract

Financial education is the development of attitudes, skills and behaviors that allow making better financial decisions. For this reason, several organizations and researchers have shown interest in identifying the financial education index, through the implementation of methodologies, whose results have generated concern about the low level found in Latin America, compared to developed countries. The objective of this research is to analyze the importance of financial education for financial decision making related to investment, savings and indebtedness. Additionally, it seeks to determine whether the financial decisions made by individuals are due to behavioral factors under different scenarios adapted to the behavioral biases of uncertainty, risk and emotions. In order to comply with the above, the OECD questionnaire has been used and adapted to a questionnaire that allows obtaining the necessary information. Data analysis included: a) descriptive statistical analysis and the use of contingency tables; b) non-parametric Mann-Whitney test. The results have allowed determining that the greater the financial education, the greater the certainty in making financial decisions, which guarantees financial well-being in the short and long term, allowing the creation of wealth and economic stability. The research was applied to members of the cooperative sector of the Popular and Solidarity Economy in the canton of Cuenca, a sector that represents at least 30% of the transfers of the Ecuadorian national financial system.