Financial literacy among high school teenagers in a developing country context - an empirical study with reference to high school students in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Both developed and developing countries and economies have become increasingly concerned about the level of financial literacy of their citizens. Previous studies indicate that unlike the case in the industrialized world, the issue of financial literacy is a contemporary issue in the developing world, and it is an understudied field in this context. This study was initiated to survey the level of basic financial literacy among high school students in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital. Such a study corresponds to global initiatives such as by OECD requesting scholars to show case the level of financial literacy among young people in different countries/contexts. The data collection instrument was a standard questionnaire that measures the level of basic financial literacy of high school teenagers in Ethiopia. The questionnaire is based on the instrument originally developed by Lusardi and Mitchell, (2005); and this study uses the slightly updated version used by Van Rooij, Lusardi and Alessie, (2011) that measures basic financial literacy from angles of numeracy, interest compounding, inflation, time value of money, and money illusion. The study concludes that the level of financial literacy is not fairly good among the high school students. The high school students in the capital are not well versed with the basic financial literacy dimensions/measurements, mainly with the assessments of interest compounding, inflation, time value of money, and money illusion. The worst assessment results are a 90.8% failure in the money illusion question, a 70.9% failure in interest compounding assessment question, and a 62.7% failure in the time value of money assessment question. These are followed by a 58.4% failure in the inflation assessment question and a 31.3% failure in the easiest assessment question of numeracy. By and large, these findings testify that the high school students in Addis Ababa have serious deficiency in basic financial literacy. Policy makers and educators may need to seriously pay attention to this shocking deficiency in the level of basic financial literacy among the high school students and take measures to educate the youth this basic life skill at young age while they are still at school.JEL Classification Code: D14

Money Illusion in Charitable Giving in the Absence of Market Price Resistance

Money illusion occurs when individuals fail to differentiate nominal from real values when making financial and economic decisions. As a consequence, they do not adjust their consumption behavior according to real variables. We report an economic experiment to study whether money illusion appears in a very simple setting. It is very important to mention that the experiment was conducted in the context of charitable giving. Our experimental results showed the absence of money illusion among the participants. Our study suggests that money illusion is not present in the absence of price stickiness (market price resistance). This finding supports Shafir et al. (1997). The main objective of our study is to develop a better understanding of economic agents’ charitable giving behaviors as influenced by perceptions of nominal income. Charitable institutions could build fundraising strategies based on behavioral tendencies to the perception of income in nominal or real terms.

Price competition and nominal illusion: experimental evidence and a behavioural model

The standard approach to nominal illusion in Economics sees it as a transitory phenomenon, as economic agents eventually see through the nominal veil, making the right choices. Recent empirical studies suggest that money illusion may persist, distorting real prices in a variety of economic environments, including the housing market and the stock market. In this paper, we explore the emergence and persistence of nominal illusion in an experimental entry game where firms must choose which local market to enter, and then compete in prices. All local markets are equivalent in real terms and they only differ in the currency the price competition is run under. Our experimental results show a positive, persistent and monotone effect of the nominal exchange rate on market prices, statistically significant for large enough exchange rate. We provide an explanation in terms of players simplifying the choice set using discrete grids.

Inflation in China during the economic reforms of the 1980s: causes and effects

The article studies the development of inflationary processes in China in the period of 1979-1989, their causes and effects. In particular, based on the analysis of statistical data, it is established that inflation in China is manifested in price and non-price forms, and also has a pronounced directive nature. This means that even excessive public investment can cause inflation. Two ways of reforming the fixed price system are considered: 1) simultaneous weakening of all prices 2) gradual weakening of prices, their slow adjustment towards the market. The relationship between inflation and macroeconomic indicators, including capital investments, wages and economic growth rates, is given. The inflation transmission mechanism of excess demand in China manifests itself due to overinvestment of state-owned enterprises, which leads to budget deficits and surplus issuance of the Yuan and causes inflation. Three phases of the Chinese phenomenon of "money illusion" are considered: the illusion of strong money without inflationary expectations (1979-1984); weakening of money illusion with some inflationary expectations (1985-1986); the formation of expectations without money illusion (since 1988). The method of using inflation to regulate the distribution of income is analyzed.. With the reform, income distribution became more uneven. To some extent, this is a desirable outcome, but the intensification of the public sector reforms resulted in not just inequality but injustice. Thus, the problem to be solved immediately is whether China can use inflation to regulate income distribution. Statistics show that per capita consumption in China in the late 1980s was only 640 Yuan. The proposed reduction in inflationary pressures views monetary policy as regulating the money supply and curbing inflation. Setting an inflation target is considered an effective tool to achieve the planned inflation rates.

Funny Money: Philanthropic Giving and the Money Illusion

This study argues that the size of philanthropic gifts is affected by donors’ perception of the value of their money. The essay examines aggregate giving to Bread for the World in former East Germany before and after two currency reforms and shows that decades of overvaluing the West German Deutschmark led East Germans to give less after the first currency reform while the second currency reform did not lead to such a drop off. The essay employs East German jokes to illustrate popular views of both East and West German currency that developed over time. It indicates that East Germans developed a perceived value of money separate from its real purchasing power, which affected their philanthropic donations. These findings are applicable to small and large philanthropic gifts, especially across currencies, as in international giving.