Financial Literacy: The Influencing Factors Among Youth

Malaysia, like all other countries throughout the world, became a victim of the COVID 19 epidemic. Based on the Malaysia's Insolvency Department 2021 statistical data, the alarming increase of individual bankruptcy cases were caused by failure to pay personal loans, instalment purchases, and credit card debt especially amongst youth. This is concerning because it implies that young Malaysians are still oblivious to their financial circumstances. Hence, the goal of this research is to investigate the level of financial literacy among youth, as well as the relationship between financial knowledge, financial behaviour, financial attitude, and familial influences on financial literacy. A non-probability convenience sampling method was used to gather information from 181 respondents. The findings of the study show that financial knowledge (p=0.000), financial behaviour (p=0.000), and family influence (p=0.000), are significantly associated to financial literacy, the dependent variable in this study, with the exception of financial attitude (p=0.418). Time constraints, insufficient independent variables covered, questionnaire development, respondents' honesty, and respondents' inequity were some of the challenges encountered while conducting this study. The most significant limitation is the sample size, which does not represent the population of Malaysian youth. The findings of this study have broad implications for a wide range of stakeholders, including university students, curriculum developer, parents of students, and future researchers. In this study, the factors that influence financial literacy among youth were examined, and it was concluded that the youth literacy level was moderate. The findings of the study will also help to support the National Strategy for Financial Literacy, which runs from 2019 to 2023.

Can I Buy My Health? A Genetically Informed Study of Socioeconomic Status and Health

Background A large literature demonstrates associations between socioeconomic status (SES) and health, including physiological health and well-being. Moreover, gender differences are often observed among measures of both SES and health. However, relationships between SES and health are sometimes questioned given the lack of true experiments, and the potential biological and SES mechanisms explaining gender differences in health are rarely examined simultaneously. Purpose To use a national sample of twins to investigate lifetime socioeconomic adversity and a measure of physiological dysregulation separately by sex. Methods Using the twin sample in the second wave of the Midlife in the United States survey (MIDUS II), biometric regression analysis was conducted to determine whether the established SES-physiological health association is observed among twins both before and after adjusting for potential familial-level confounds (additive genetic and shared environmental influences that may underly the SES-health link), and whether this association differs among men and women. Results Although individuals with less socioeconomic adversity over the lifespan exhibited less physiological dysregulation among this sample of twins, this association only persisted among male twins after adjusting for familial influences. Conclusions Findings from the present study suggest that, particularly for men, links between socioeconomic adversity and health are not spurious or better explained by additive genetic or early shared environmental influences. Furthermore, gender-specific role demands may create differential associations between SES and health.

Factors Contributing To Financial Literacy Level Among Youth

The number of bankruptcy cases registered from 2017 to April 2021, according to the Malaysian Insolvency Department, is 58,065. Bankruptcy cases involving people under the age of 34 accounted for 24.28 percent of all filings. The inability to pay personal loans, instalment purchases, and credit card debt led to the majority of bankruptcy cases. This is alarming because it suggests that young Malaysians are still unaware of their financial situation. As a result, the goal of this research is to investigate the level of financial literacy among youth, as well as the relationship between financial knowledge, financial behaviour, financial attitude, and familial influences on financial literacy. A non-probability convenience sampling method was used to gather information from 181 respondents. The findings of the study show that financial knowledge (p=0.000), financial behaviour (p=0.000), and family influence (p=0.000) are significantly associated with financial literacy, the dependent variable in this study, with the exception of financial attitude (p=0.418). The sample size is among the limitation of this study which it does not represent the population of youth in Malaysia. The conclusions of this study have significant consequences for a variety of stakeholders, including university students, universities, students' parents, government, and future researchers. The factors that influence financial literacy among youth were investigated in this study, and several significant factors were revealed. This will also add to the supports of the agenda in the National Strategy for Financial Literacy 2019 to 2023.

Investigating Matriarchal Mimicry of Patriarchy in a Pakistani Novel

In an Eastern society, the institution of matrimony is influenced by social, cultural, psychological, emotional, religious and familial influences. Using concepts of "mimicry" and "the Other" under theoretical stances of mimicry by Bhaba (1994) and "the Other" by Simone De Beauvoir (1956), How it Happened (2013) is investigated in this study. These frameworks explicate the violation and suppression of women in terms of matrimonial affairs in the novel. The findings revealed that the elderly female characters mimic the patriarchal norms by extending them to the next level through matriarchy. It is found that the matriarchy by the elder female characters is authoritative, unchallenged and influential that even the male characters in the novel cannot interfere in the female jurisdiction in matrimonial decisions and verdicts. However, the analysis also revealed that there was sexism in terms of matrimonial choices in which male had the freedom to choose while the female had none.

STEM-Related Career Development of Immigrant and International College Students at an Historically Black University

Post-secondary education serves as a transition between secondary education and the world of work for many individuals, including visiting international students and immigrants. These latter groups are present on campuses in the U.S. bringing varying goals and beliefs. However, little research or practice could be found to address the potential career development needs of this group. This chapter explores the role of gender, academic major, and familial influences on a sample of immigrant and international students' career development (n = 125). Participants completed STEM-specific measures of career interest and commitment. Data were analyzed for differences between Immigrant and International students, genders, and institution type, finding significant differences on four career development measures. Significant differences were also found between groups on three of the six contextual factors, and on comparisons to other diverse samples.

Papás Activos: Associations between Physical Activity, Sedentary Behavior and Personal Networks among Fathers Living in Texas Colonias

Despite growing health disparities in Latino populations related to lack of physical activity (PA), little is known regarding the impact of social networks on PA and sedentary behavior among a sample of Latino fathers residing in functionally rural colonias. Fathers wore accelerometers and responded to questions regarding their self-efficacy and characteristics of who they were active with most often. Fathers (n = 47) attained a mean of 73.3 min of moderate-to-vigorous PA (SD = 23.8) per day and were sedentary for a mean of 364.0 min (SD = 74.4) per day. In total, fathers reported 205 alters and significantly more family members (M = 3.60, SD = 1.64) than friends (M = 0.77, SD = 1.37). Sedentary time was positively associated with number of peers and inversely related to the number of children reported. Minutes of moderate-to-vigorous PA was significantly associated with greater self-efficacy and number of family members reported. This study contributes to the evidence by further examining PA correlates of Latino fathers from functionally rural colonia communities. Additionally, this study supported both family systems theory and the socio–ecological model as it details the interpersonal and familial influences of PA behavior. Thus, supports for family activity promotion and programs which impact familial norms and activity at the family level may be particularly useful.

The Genetic and Environmental Influences Contributing to the Association between Electronic and Conventional Cigarette Initiation

Introduction As the use of electronic cigarettes (EC) continues to rise in the United States, especially among adolescents and young adults, it is necessary to better understand factors associated with EC initiation. Specifically, it is unclear how genetic and environmental contributions influence the initiation of EC. Further, the degree to which genetic and environmental influences are shared between EC initiation and conventional cigarette (CC) initiation is unknown. Methods A sample of young adult twins ages 15-20 (N = 858 individuals; 421 complete twin pairs) was used to estimate the genetic and environmental influences on the liability of initiation unique to EC and CC as well as the degree to which these factors are shared between the two. Approximately 24% of participants initiated use of EC, 19% initiated use of CC, and 11% initiated dual use. Results Combined contributions of additive genetic and shared environmental influences were significant for CC (ACC = 0.19 [95% CI = 0-0.79], p = 0.57; CCC = 0.42 [95% CI = 0-0.70], p = 0.13) and EC (AEC = 0.25 [95% CI = 0-0.83, p = 0.44; CEC = 0.42 [95% CI = 0-0.73], p = 0.12), while unique environmental influences were significant (ECC = 0.39 [95% CI = 0.18-0.57], p < 0.001; EEC = 0.32 [95% CI = 0.14-0.56], p < 0.001). Results also demonstrated a significant overlap of the unique environmental (rE = 0.87, p < 0.001) and familial influences contributing to correlation between the two phenotypes in the bivariate analysis. Conclusions These preliminary results suggest that both genes and environmental influences are potential drivers of electronic cigarette initiation among adolescents and young adults. Implications This article is the first to use a sample of twin to estimate the contributions of genetic and environmental influences toward EC initiation and estimate the potential for overlapping influences with CC initiation. This study has implications for future debate about the etiology of EC and CC use with respect to potential overlapping genetic and environmental influences.

Affirmative Counseling With LGBTQ+ Arab Americans

This article explores mental health risk factors and cultural considerations of Arab Americans who are LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or belonging to other nonheterosexual and/or non-cisgender identities), including the influence of intersecting identities, religion and spirituality, familial influences, sexuality and sexual behavior, and attitudes toward mental health counseling. LGBTQ+ affirmative counseling recommendations are presented with a focus on developing cultural competence via awareness, knowledge, skills, and action. Implications for counselor training and future research conclude this article.