Financial Parenting, Financial Coping Behaviors, and Well-Being of Emerging Adults

Author(s): Joyce Serido, Soyeon Shim, Anubha Mishra and Chuanyi Tang
Source: Family Relations, Vol. 59, No. 4, SPECIAL COLLECTION: FAMILY, FINANCES, AND
HARD TIMES (October 2010), pp. 453-464
Published by: National Council on Family Relations
Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/40864564
Accessed: 18-02-2020 07:51 UTC

REFERENCES
Linked references are available on JSTOR for this article:
https://www.jstor.org/stable/40864564?seq=1&cid=pdf-reference#references_tab_contents
You may need to log in to JSTOR to access the linked references.

JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide
range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and
facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected].

Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at
https://about.jstor.org/terms

National Council on Family Relations is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and
extend access to Family Relations

This content downloaded from 203.189.120.32 on Tue, 18 Feb 2020 07:51:00 UTC
All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms
 Joyce Serido, Soyeon Shim, Anubha Mishra, and Chuanyi Tang University of Arizona

Financial Parenting, Financial Coping Behaviors,

and Weil-Being of Emerging Adults

The goal of this study was to consider the role and well-being (Xiao, Tang, & Shim, 2008).
of parents in the development of their children 's For these reasons, it is important to understand
financial independence by the time the children how young adults acquire the financial behav-
are old enough to enter college. Using data from iors to manage their financial obligations. In this
2, 098 first-year university students, we examined study, we developed and tested a model of finan-
two pathways to emerging adults ' financial, cial parenting, as perceived by college students,
psychological, and personal well-being, com- on financial coping behaviors and the associa-
bining research on the positive effects of family tions of both perceived financial parenting and
financial environment and future-oriented cop- financial coping behaviors on young adults' psy-
ing behaviors. Two findings are of particular chological, financial, and subjective well-being.
note. The quality of parent-child communica- Although developmental studies have examined
tion regarding financial topics proved to be the association of parenting factors on college
the most potent predictor of children 's finan- students' psychological health (Agliata & Renk,
cial, psychological, and personal well-being. 2008) and overall well-being (Holahan, Valen-
Further, parents ' expectations had a significant tiner, & Moos, 1994), the financial domain has
indirect influence (via financial coping behav- been historically neglected. We contend that the
iors) on their children 's well-being. Implications financial coping behaviors practiced in college
for promoting financial self-sufficiency among are the basis of the financial habits practiced
young adults are discussed. in adulthood (Olshavsky & Granbois, 1979)
and may contribute to our understanding of
the longer-term association between financial
Financial strain is a significant source of stress behaviors and well-being in adulthood.
for college students (Staats, Cosmar, & Kaf- The role of parents as socializing agents
fenberger, 2007). Over time, it raises the risks in their children's development has been well
of depression and other mental health problems studied (Bornstein, 2002). Although parental
(Eisenberg et al., 200 1 ) and lowers the likelihood socialization declines as an adolescent becomes
of graduating from college (Kim, 2007). In con- older (De Goede, Branje, & Meeus, 2009),
trast, responsible financial behaviors are asso- parents as agents of financial socialization may
ciated with both greater financial satisfaction be particularly salient during the transition
to college as children pay their own bills
and make independent consumer purchases. At
least one study found that among financial
John and Doris Norton School of Family and Consumer
Sciences, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721-0078 socializing agents (parents, peer, media, and
(jserido@ email.arizona.edu). school) of college students, only parents'
Key Words: adolescent development, family stress and communication was negatively associated with
coping, financial coping, financial parenting, parent-child outstanding credit-card balance (Pinto, Parente,
relations. & Mansfield, 2005).

Family Relations 59 (October 2010): 453-464 453

DOI:10.1111/j.l741-3729.2010.00615.x

This content downloaded from 203.189.120.32 on Tue, 18 Feb 2020 07:51:00 UTC
All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms
454 Family Relations

The current study

attitudes, inve
and
which collegebehaviors
students' (M
per
parenting (e.g., parental
important f
soc
tion, parentalwhich childre
financial expe
social status) were
financial associ
man
financial, psychological,
tally (by obser
being. From through
the perspecti
lesson
adult child, ents
we examined
(Moschis;
interactions are
with parents
important
that promote dren's
or emotio
inhibit y
iors (Olson, 2001)
1977).
and
In thi
beh
that young Hartman,
adults' 19
percept
enting servetion
as a occurs
basis th
for
their own financial
young behav
adultho
1996). To provide
regarding
a sufficie
fina
to conduct comes
our study,(Shim
we s
tal research in
concerning
press). On pa
t
adolescent ouremerging
and Model of
integrated Financial
these Copi
findings
sumer Young
socialization. Adults
We the
from the adults'
coping financi
literature
test the Modelpromote
of well
Perceived
Financial adults
Coping develo
Behavior
Young Adults tencies
(Figure (Hilak
1).
Haas, 2008), an
development o
Theoretical Framework fo

The conceptual
Review ofmodel
the Literature th
draws upon the theory of
Parenting and Children 's Well-Being
(Moschis, 1987). The theory
ization In this
posits study, we define
that financial parent
individu
dren and in terms of perceived parent-emerging
adolescents, deve ad
by financial interactions
interacting with (parental financial comm
variou
including parents, to
nications and parental financial acq
expectations)

Figure 1 . Conceptual Model of Financial Parenting, Financial Coping Behaviors, and Well-Being of

Financial Parenting | ( '

- Parental Social Status
- Perceived Parental Financial

Communications / - Psychological Distress

- Perceived Parental Financial / - Subjective Well-Being
Expectations J /I I

' c ^ /
' Future-Oriented Financial /
' Coping Behaviors /
- Preventive (Budgeting)
- Proactive (Saving)

This content downloaded from 203.189.120.32 on Tue, 18 Feb 2020 07:51:00 UTC
All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms
Financial Coping Behaviors of Emerging Adults 455

Grudzinska, 2004)
well as parental social status. Although and other negative behaviors
parental
(Duncan & Brooks-Gunn,
social status is not a financial interaction per se, 2000). In contrast,
we contend that social status, defined as a social
higher parental combi-status has been linked to
nation of parental income and successful
parental school outcomes (Grinstein- Weiss,
education
(Zhang & Wang, 2004), forms Yeo, theIrish, & Zhan, for
context 2009), more positive
transitions
parent-child financial interactions and to adulthood
is there- (Schoeni & Ross, 2005),
fore important in the formation and improved well-being in mid-life (Bell &
of emerging
Bell, 2005). Although it is not clear whether
adults' financial coping behaviors.
Research on parental communication and
parental social status or intervening parent-child
developmental outcomes findsinteraction
that perceptions
processes account for the association
of higher quality parent-child between economic advantage and improved life
communications
are associated with more positive outcomes, we can expect
outcomes in to find a positive
adolescents (Nash, McQueen, & Bray,
association 2005)
between parental social status and
emerging adults'
and reduced risky behaviors among financial, psychological, and
emerging
adults (Holahan et al., 1994). Consumer behav-
subjective well-being.
ior researchers have also found that parental
communication plays an important socializing
Coping Behavior and Well-Being Among
role in their children's consumer knowledge,
Young Adults
skills, values, and orientation in the market-
place (Moschis, 1985). In capitalizing
Parents provide aon the
setting for their children to
learn to cope
positive relation between parental with life's demands (Eisenberg
communi-
cation and children's outcomes, we
et al., 200 1 ). extended
Although we are aware of no studies
the concept and expected to examining
find parenting
a positive factors and children's
association between perceived parental financial
financial coping behaviors, we expect that there
communications and young will adults' financial,
be a positive association between financial
parenting as perceived by their emerging
psychological, and subjective well-being.
adult children
Parental expectations show both direct andand
children's financial coping
behaviors. There is evidence
indirect associations with developmental out-that choice of
coping behaviors
comes for children. In a nine-year, longitudi- correlates with well-being
nal study of 201 families, Dotterer, McHale,
such that active coping behaviors (e.g., problem
solving)
and Crouter (2009) found that are associated
mothers' posi- with more positive
outcomes,academic
tive expectations of their children's and passive coping (e.g., avoidance
achievement were positively is associated
associated with with
less positive outcomes (Cohen,
youths' level of interest in Ben-Zur,
academics. Other2008; Dyson & Renk,
& Rosenfeld,
2006).
studies have found that parental Although coping typically refers to
expectations
facilitated successful adjustment to college
behaviors by
taken in response to problems, curren
theory
increasing students' subjective conceptualizes
well-being and coping as a process of
decreasing psychological distress (Agliata
ongoing adaptation & and is therefore both
to life
Renk, 2008; Wang & Heppner, 2002).
a reactive To (i.e.,
process ourto deal with problems)
and
knowledge, there are no studies a future-oriented
that examine the process to avoid future
association between parentalproblems
financial expec- coping) and to attain
(i.e., preventive
tations and the well-being of young
future adults.
goals (i.e., proactive coping; Schwarzer
& Knoll,
Nevertheless, given the positive 2003).
relationships
that exist between general parental expectations
Although the empirical research on future-
and children's outcomes, we oriented
expected coping to find
among emerging adults is lim-
ited (Gan,
that perceived parental financial Yang, Zhou, & Zhang, 2007), these
expectations,
too, would have a positive association withinteresting findings. Fo
studies have produced
instance, Greenglass
emerging adults' financial, psychological, and and Fiksenbaum (2009
subjective well-being. found that proactive coping behaviors were asso
There is also support for ciated
an association
with increased positive affect (measured
between parental social status and children's
concurrently) and decreased depressive symp-
well-being. For instance, lower social status
toms (measured 8 weeks later). They furthe
has been associated with reduced health and found that the strength of the association between
well-being of children (Davis, Banks, Fisher,positive
& affect and getting on with life decrease

This content downloaded from 203.189.120.32 on Tue, 18 Feb 2020 07:51:00 UTC
All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms
 456 Family Relations

after accounting Method for proac

Gan et al. provided furthe
Sample
that preventive and proact
rate factors.A total of
In 2,098 first-year
a students, who attend a
populatio
students major, land-grant, public university,
examining thecompleted role
relation the survey, representing students'
between 32% of the 2007 first-
and academicyear cohort. This sample closely resembled
engagement,
that the university cohort
proactive coping but contained a slightly full
relation higher percentage of women
between stress (61.9 vs. 54.3%), and
preventive in-state
coping students (69.1 vs. 63%), and did
greater no
adapted the ethnic
concept diversity (67.4 White vs. 69.9%of
White). fut
conform to The
twoethnic compositionfinancial
of the student sample c
ventive included: White (67.4%),coping
financial Hispanic (14.9%), be
to general Asian/Asian American/Pacific Islander (9%), unde
precautions
future Black (3.4%), Native
financial American (1.8%), and
uncertainty
cial coping other/missing (3.5%). The average grade point
behavior, which
build up average (GPA) of the sample was slightly
resources to higher prom
personal than the university's reported
growth. average for the
Consiste
finance full cohort (3.12 vs. 2.79). The parents
literature (Xiao, of the 2
spending majority of the students'
within (71%) were married;
budget we
tive financial23% were divorced;
coping the remaining parents (6%)beha
investing were widowed or considered
were never married.
coping behaviors.
Procedure
The Current Study
Over an 8-week period during spring 2008, we
Using our collected data from first-year students
conceptual Modeenrolled
cial full-time (i.e.,
Parenting, 12 or more units) at the uni- C
Financial
Well-Being versity. After
of Youngwe received approval from Adul the
explored theHuman Subjects Committee, we
process invited the
throug
acquire entire freshman class
financial (approximately 6,000 stu-
coping be
the associations among
dents) to participate in the study and used variousper
enting, recruitment methods,
financial including the university'sbe
coping
dimensions email
of accounts, campus media, flyers, and class w
students'
cial, announcements. All respondents
psychological, and were offeredsu a
We nominal incentivethat
hypothesized (e.g., $10 to the there
first 1,000
beneficial respondents and $5 to subsequent respondents)
association betw
cial parenting for their participation.
and In addition, student every student
cally, we who completed the survey
expected to was automatically
find
parenting, asentered into a raffle for a chance to receive
reported by a y
financial larger item (e.g.,
stress, an iPod Touch). The survey
decreases p
and increasesquestionnaire was posted online throughout thewe
subjective
hypothesized entire that
8-week period of data collection. During
perceive
would havethea final weeks of data collection, a pencil-and-
positive ass
adults' paper survey was administered in classrooms
future-oriented fin
iors. Finally,and freshman
we residential halls as a means of
simultane
combined including students
direct who had not indire
and responded to
ceived financial email recruiting efforts.
parentingThe majority (85.7%)
behaviors onof thestudents'
respondents completed an online we sur-
esized that in addition to the direct association vey, whereas the remaining students (14.3%)
of perceived financial parenting on students' completed the pencil-and-paper version of the
well-being, there would be indirect associations survey. / 2 test analyses, comparing the two data
through future-oriented financial coping behav- sources, revealed that the paper survey yielded
iors. higher percentages of men and more Hispanic,

This content downloaded from 203.189.120.32 on Tue, 18 Feb 2020 07:51:00 UTC
All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms
 Financial Coping Behaviors of Emerging Adults 457

Native American, and lower GPA

to students than
5 (very often), each student's proactive finan-
had the online survey. cial coping behavior. The items measured the
extent to which respondents saved money and
Measures invested in long-term financial goals. Coefficient
a was .81.
Perceived financial parenting. The following
general statement preceded questions about
Well-being outcomes
parents, "In this survey, the term 'parents,'
Financial stress. We included this variable
refers to birth parents, adoptive parents, foster
parents, or legal guardians, as appropriate."as a way to measure the extent to which
the respondents worry about money or have
Perceived parental financial communications.
difficulty paying for things. Three items
Three items were adopted from Allen, Edwards,
measured financial stress on a 5-point scale that
Hayhoe, and Leach (2007) to assess respondents'
ranged from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly
perception of communication quality with their
agree). Coefficient a was .84.
parents regarding financial issues since coming
to college. Items were measured on a 5 -point
Psychological distress. The eight items we
scale ranging from 1 {strongly disagree) to to measure psychological distress were
used
5 (strongly agree). The items included, adopted
for from Barber, Eccles, and Stone (2001).
example, "Since coming to college, I argue
Respondents were asked to rate, on a 5-point
a lot with my parents about money matters
scale that ranged from 1 (never) to 5 (very
(reversed)." Coefficients was .76.
often), how often they felt unhappy, tired,
overwhelmed, or discouraged about the future.
Perceived parental financial expectations. Re-
Coefficient a was .79.
spondents were asked to rate, on a 5-point
scale that ranged from 1 (strongly disagree)
Subjective well-being. Respondents were asked
to 5 (strongly agree), their perception of
to report how often they felt satisfied with life,
parents' expectations that they engage in six
satisfied with self, good about self, and sure of
different responsible financial coping behaviors.
self. The four items, adopted from Diener ( 1 984),
These included such behaviors as tracking
were measured using a 5-point scale that ranged
monthly expenses, spending within a budget,
and paying credit-card balances in full eachfrom 1 (never) to 5 (very often). Coefficient a
was .79.
month. Coefficient a for the scale was .83.

Parental social status. Parental social status was

Data Analysis
calculated using the CSI (Computerized Status
Index) method (Coleman, 1983) to index the To test the conceptual model and investigate
education levels of both parents and the total the hypothesized relationships, we used the
household income. Coefficient a was 0.72. two-step structural equation modeling proposed
by Anderson and Gerbing (1988). Lisrel 8.0
Future-oriented financial coping behaviors was employed to conduct the analysis. The
measurement model was first developed by con-
Preventive financial coping behaviors. Three ducting a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA).
items, aimed at understanding each student's Construct validities were also evaluated in the
money management practices (e.g., budgeting measurement model. Then a structure model
and paying), were used to measure preventive was established and the hypothesized relation-
financial coping behavior. These included such ships among the constructs were examined in
items as "track monthly expenses," and "spend the structure model. In addition, indirect effects
within the budget." All three items were were computed as the products of relevant paths
measured on a 5-point scale that ranged from between the independent variable and interven-
1 (never) to 5 (very often). Coefficient a was ing variable (also known as a mediator) and
.74. between the intervening variable and dependent
variable (with standard error for significance
Proactive financial coping behaviors. Three testing on the basis of joint significance test-
items measured, on a 5-point scale, 1 (never) ing of these two associations; see MacKinnon,

This content downloaded from 203.189.120.32 on Tue, 18 Feb 2020 07:51:00 UTC
All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms
 458 Family Relations

Lockwood, Hoffman,
financial We
coping behaviors (i.e., preventive,
Descriptive proactive) results served as predictorsregard
of student well-
deviations, and the
being (i.e., financial stress, correlat
psychological dis-
variables are available
tress, subjective up
well-being). Because there were
primary author. some slight differences in levels of subjective
well-being, perceived parental financial expecta-
Results tions, and preventive financial coping behaviors
between respondents who completed the sur-
Measurement Model
vey online versus paper, we controlled for the
The CFA results for the overall measure- administration format by including a dichoto-
ment model fit were x2(467) = 4581.317, mous p predictor
= (0 = online, 1 = paper) of all
variables in the structural model. This model
.000; CFI = .916; NFI = .908; NNFI = .905;
allowed us to evaluate the extent to which each
RMSEA = .0660, indicating that these indices
were acceptable (Bollen, 1989). Modificationof these factors was uniquely associated with
indices (>3.84; Hair, Anderson, Tatham, & respondents' well-being and to compare the
Black, 1998), however, suggested that the mea-relative magnitude of these predictive associa-
surement errors of perceived parents' financial tions controlling for administration format. The
expectations regarding expense tracking andresults of the structure model fit were x 2 (49 1 ) =
spending within the budget, as well as the 4114.518, p = .000; CFI = .926; NFI = .917;
measurement errors of perceived parents' finan-NNFI = .916; RMSEA = .0596, indicating that
cial expectation regarding saving and investing, these indices were acceptable (Bollen, 1989).
should be correlated. As the consumer behav- We, however, eliminated the four nonsignif-
ior literature provides a theoretical basis foricant paths (i.e., from parental social status
these correlations (Xiao, 2008), we made these to proactive financial coping behaviors, from
modifications. The CFA results for the mod- perceived parental financial expectations to psy-
ified measurement model fit were x2(465) chological
= distress, from preventative financial
4073.434, p = .000; CFI = .927; NFI = .918;coping behaviors to subjective well-being, and
NNFI = .917; RMSEA = .0610, also indicat- from perceived parental financial expectations
ing that these indices were acceptable (Bollen). to financial stress) and reran the model. The
results for the modified structural model fit were
Compared to the original model, the overall fit of
the adjusted model was significantly improved, X2(494) = 41 19.775, p = .000; CFI = .926;
as indicated by a significant reduction in x2 test NFI = .917; NNFI = .916; RMSEA = .0594,
(Ax2 = 507.883, Adf = 2, p < .05). Therefore, also indicating that these indices were accept-
we use the modified model as our final mea- able. We are used the modified model as our
final structural model. The results of this model
surement model. We then assessed convergent
validities by examining the indicator loadingsare displayed in Figure 2, which shows only the
(Table 1). The factor loadings of all indicatorssignificant, unique predictions.
for each construct were statistically significant
and of a sufficient magnitude. Further, the reli- Tests of the Hypothesized Relationships
abilities of all constructs were adequate (>0.7).
Thus, convergent validity was supported. TheAs hypothesized, the direct associations of all
test of discriminant validity involves comparingthree parenting constructs were related (by dif-
models that are either free or constrain the phiferent degrees) to well-being constructs. The
strongest association was the significant relation
value to 1 and testing for a significant decrease
in fit (Bagozzi, Yi, & Phillips, 1991). For all between perceived parental financial commu-
cases, the overall fit significantly decreased and nications and all three well-being constructs.
thus supported discriminant validity. More specifically, perceived parental financial
communications was negatively associated with
financial stress and psychological distress, and
Structural Model
positively associated with subjective well-being.
We next fit a structural model in which financial This means that respondents who reported higher
parenting (i.e., parental social status, perceived perceived parental financial communications
parental financial communication, perceived reported lower financial stress and psychological
parental financial expectations) and students' distress and higher subjective well-being. To a

This content downloaded from 203.189.120.32 on Tue, 18 Feb 2020 07:51:00 UTC
All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms
Financial Coping Behaviors of Emerging Adults 459

Table 1. Factor Loadings of Indicators With Latent Constructs (N

Construct/Indicator Standardized Factor Loading Scale Reliability (a)

Parental social status .717

Father education .79 1 **
Mother education .695**
Parental income .582**

Perceived parental financial communications .775

Relationship is not good because of money issues (reversed) .747**
Parents do not approve of my spending patterns (reversed) .607**
Argue a lot with my parents about money matters (reversed) .870**
Perceived parental financial expectations .833
Track monthly expenses .60 1 **
Spend within the budget .664**
Pay credit card balances in full each month .668**
Save money each month for the future .753**
Invest for long-term financial goals regularly .73 1**
Learn about money management regularly .557**
Preventive financial coping .736
Budget on a regular basis .789**
Track monthly expenses .745**
Spend within the budget .566**
Proactive financial coping .808
Save money each month for the future .734**
Save for emergencies .847**
Invest for long-term financial goals .810**
Financial stress .836

I am satisfied with the way I pay my bills (reversed) .902**

I have difficulty paying for things .895**
I am constantly worried about money .897**
Psychological distress .788
Have nothing to look forward to .520**
Changes in appetite .5 1 8**
Discouraged about the future .694**
Worry about getting a job .6 1 8**
Unhappy .651**
Not enough money .625**
Overwhelmed .477**
Tired .482**

Subjective well-being .787

Satisfied with life .593**
Satisfied with self .767**
Good about self .680**
Sure of self .756**
_____

lesserRegarding the direct association between d

social
financial parenting and future-oriented financial s
wascoping behaviors (i.e., preventive,
sim proactive),
cial com
both perceived parental financial communica-
expecta
tions and perceived parental expectations were
positively associated with increased use of
associat
only. future-oriented coping behaviors, with a stronger

This content downloaded from 203.189.120.32 on Tue, 18 Feb 2020 07:51:00 UTC
All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms
 460 Family Relations

Figure 2. Structural Model of the Direct and Indirect Associations of Financial Parenting and Financial
Coping Behaviors on the Well-Being of Emerging Adults.

Financial Parenting Well-Being

f Parental Social ^_ ~'33
V status y^

f Perceived ' ^^K^^'^1 ^Sss

( Parental Financial /^CT '
'^ Communications^/ ''^^'^^ 24" ^' / / // yy'. ^»«^

' ^| Preventive ^^^06/^4/^^ /^~^ ^"""Ny

^
S^ ^ Perceived <v ^>^' ^
f Parental '^^--

V Financial r' q5* ' ** // "^ .

v^Expectations^/ ^^>' ' 1/
^Sv^4f Proactive ^y

Future-Oriented Financial Coping Behaviors

association for perceived parental financial

indirect benefits of financial coping behavio
on the
expectations. Parental social status, well-being of emerging adults. To o
however,
had an unexpected negative association
knowledge,with
the current study is the first to exa
ine financial
preventive financial coping behaviors and nobehaviors as coping strategies in
significant association with proactive acquiring financial competence, providing su
financial
coping behaviors. port for direct benefits of perceived financi
As for the direct association between financial
parenting on students' financial, psychologic
coping behaviors and well-being, there and subjective
were sig-well-being. Further, perceiv
nificant associations between students' parental financial communications and pe
proactive
financial coping behaviors and two ceived parental financial expectations benefitt
well-being
constructs. More specifically, proactivestudents indirectly through the use of futur
financial
oriented financial
coping behavior had a negative association with coping behaviors. Consiste
financial stress and psychological with socialization
distress. As theory (Moschis, 1987), o
expected, preventive financial coping findings provide support that financial intera
behaviors
had a negative association with tions between parents and college-aged childr
respondents'
psychological distress but an unexpectedmay facilitate
posi- the development of childre
tive association with financial stress. financial coping behaviors. Further, our find
ings suggest that financial parenting interaction
operate independently, with unique association
Discussion
on the well-being of college-aged children. Tw
findings are of particular note. First, althou
This study examined the role that interactions
with parents play in promoting theparental
finan- social status is a reliable correlate
cial coping behaviors and well-being offinancial
their well-being, the quality of communic
college-aged children as a basis for financial
tion with parents as perceived by their emergi
adult
competence in adulthood. To this end, we children around financial topics show
found
support for a conceptual model of the a more
directrobust association, both with stronge
direct
benefits of perceived financial parenting and associations on all well-being outcomes

This content downloaded from 203.189.120.32 on Tue, 18 Feb 2020 07:51:00 UTC
All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms
Financial Coping Behaviors of Emerging Adults 46 1

well as significant indirect associations had no effect

throughon the proactive financial coping
financial coping behaviors. Second, behaviors of students. Although the availabil-
although
less important on the surface, perceived ity of material
parental resources may indeed reduce
expectations demonstrate the strongest financial stress and promote well-being among
asso-
ciation via financial coping behaviors. These
these students, these same students may not be
findings are discussed in more detail developing
below.the financial competence they need
to manage their own finances effectively in the
future. These speculations about the role that
The Role of Perceived Parental Financial
Communication
parental social status plays in prolonging emerg-
ing adults' dependence on parents and delaying
Our data shows that emerging adult childrenthe development of financial competence would
who perceive that they can talk with their parentsmost likely require a longitudinal study to test the
about financial topics reduce their financial stress connection between parental social status during
and psychological distress while increasing theircollege and financial competence and financial
subjective well-being as they adjust to college well-being after college.
life. We contend that during the transition to
college, parent-child discussions about finances
and financial management provide a window The Role of Perceived Parental Financial
of opportunity, offering a training ground upon Expectations
which the young person can practice financial
The positive association between perceived
coping behaviors as well as ushering in a more
parental expectations and subjective well-being
egalitarian parent-child relationship (Aquilino,
was slight. Perceived parental expectations were,
1997). Open and supportive discussions between
however, strongly and positively associated with
children and parents about financial topics at this
students' proactive financial coping behaviors.
time may promote the acquisition of responsi-
The strength of this positive association in the
ble financial coping behaviors in their college-
use of both preventive and proactive financial
aged children, which may strengthen emerging
coping behaviors suggests that students' percep-
adults' financial competence and contribute to
tions of how their parents' expect them to behave
self-sufficiency in adulthood. Because college
carry weight. As college students begin to take
students are making independent financial deci-
responsibility for their own decisions, parents'
sions that may affect their financial coping
expectations about managing personal finances
behaviors as adults, we further contend that
may facilitate the development of responsible
emerging adulthood is a developmentally appro-
financial behaviors. Because many college stu-
priate time for parents to offer financial guidance
to their children. dents continue to seek their parents' approval
(Youniss & Smollar, 1989), parents' expecta-
tions may promote the practice of responsible
The Role of Parental Social Status financial behaviors young adults will need to
manage the financial demands of life on their
On the basis of findings of previous studies, it
own.
is not surprising that our study adds support to
the notion that parental social status contributes
to children's well-being. More intriguing is the
Responsible Financial Behaviors and
decreased use of preventive financial coping
Well-Being
behaviors among students from higher social
status parents. Possibly, these students haveOverall, our findings provide support that engag-
ample financial resources and do not feel theing in more responsible financial coping behav-
need to manage their finances because they can iors relates to increased well-being. The positive
turn to their parents to meet unexpected financial association between preventive financial coping
obligations. It is also possible that parents withbehaviors and financial stress was, however,
greater financial resources are more likely to unexpected. We speculate that this unexpected
make financial decisions concerning their chil-association emanates from students' inexperi-
dren's finances, and thus the children remain ence in juggling the routine expenses of living on
more financially dependent on their parents. It their own. In addition to tuition and other school
is interesting to note that parental social status expenses, students' must manage typical living

This content downloaded from 203.189.120.32 on Tue, 18 Feb 2020 07:51:00 UTC
All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms
 462 Family Relations

expenses, A second limitation relates to

including the wording of
food, c
sonal items. theIn parenting questions in the survey. As the
follow-up fo
of the students,
length of the survey one was quite long, we youn
chose to
"You don't even
limit the response realize
format combining students'all
need - like perception of mother'spaper,
toilet and father's financial to
much milk because
parenting into a single construct; my
thus the format ro
it and I would
did not account for only hav
reporting differences between
home, it wasparents. just
Further testing ofthere."
the model is warranted T
association to examine these reflect
may differences. the
curity about Third, although we found evidence
learning to for the liv
than budgetingdirect and indirectbehaviors.
pathways by which perceived
because students'
financial parenting contributes income
to college stu-
limited, they have
dents' financial, to
psychological, mak
and subjective
to spend their
well-being, the money.
model was evaluated using con- Th
budget and current
tracking expen
data. Therefore, when interpreting our
dents aware that
presumed predictive to pay
relations, caution is war-the
to skip some social
ranted, and it should be takengatherin
into consideration
choosing to that
go alternativeto "Happy
causal pathways are equally plau-
may make itsible. difficult
It is possible that young adult factors to p
be that the(e.g.,hypothesized
maturity, communication style) account
(more preventive coping
for the perceived quality of parent-emerging b
stress) will be evident
adult financial once
interactions. Future longitudi-
rience living independentl
nal research is needed as a means of better
that should be examined
understanding in
the relation of perceived finan-
cial parenting to financial coping behaviors and
Limitations well-being across time.
A final caution relates to generalizing our
Although this study found support for severalfindings to include emerging adults other than
hypotheses not evaluated in previous research, college students. Although many emerging
there are limitations that merit consideration.
adults rely on their parents for some support
First, we relied only on self-reported data as they transition to adulthood (Schoeni & Ross,
obtained from respondents, in accordance with 2005), those who do not attend college may rely
our interest in understanding the developmental on a type of support that differs systematically
process of personal financial competence. This from the support provided to those who do attend
approach introduces the possibility of shared college. Further, both the financial resources
reporter variance, which would inflate the data and the family processes of emerging adults in
showing associations among variables. Our eval- college may differ in systematic ways from those
uation of key hypotheses within a multivariate who are not in college, and for this reason data
framework (e.g., the structural model shown in collected from a sample of these emerging adults
Figure 2), however, examines unique associa- may not conform to the findings obtained in this
tions, controlling for other variables. These con- study. Future research should examine these
trols should have effectively removed most of theprocesses as they occur in the large number of
shared reporter bias, and, therefore, we believe youth who do not attend college.
that the results we obtained can be considered
reasonably accurate. It would be interesting,
however, to consider if parents' perspectives,
Implications and Conclusions
or the gap between students' and parents' per-
spectives, yield similar results. Future research Financial competence emerges from an under-
ascertaining the perspectives of parents in addi- standing of the basic principles of sound money
tion to the perspectives of their children could management as well as opportunities to practice
provide additional insights regarding the family money management skills. This study highlights
processes that facilitate or inhibit the formation the important role that interactions with parents
of responsible financial coping behaviors among can play in the responsible financial decisions
emerging adults. made by their college-aged children. Our

This content downloaded from 203.189.120.32 on Tue, 18 Feb 2020 07:51:00 UTC
All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms
Financial Coping Behaviors of Emerging Adults 463

findings suggest that perceived expectation discrepancies and communication

positive parent-
reciprocity.
child financial interactions, more than parental Journal of Youth and Adolescence
social status, contribute to the 37,967-982.
development of
Allen, M. W.,
sound financial coping behaviors. We Edwards,
believeR., Hayhoe, C. R., &
Leach, L. (2007). Imagined interactions, family
that parents should be educated about the impor-
money management patterns and coalitions, and
tance of positive financial discussions with
attitudes toward money and credit. Journal of
their children and expectationsFamily
of their chil-
and Economic Issues, 28, 3-22.
dren regarding financial management. In light
Anderson, J. C, & Gerbing, D. W. (1988). Structural
of these findings, just-in-time discussions
equation modeling aboutin practice: A review and
financial topics, that is, children-initiated
recommended two-step dis-approach. Psychological
cussions or discussions about upcoming/recent
Bulletin, 703(3), 411- 423.
financial transactions, can be seenW.as
Aquilino, "teach-
S. (1997). From adolescent to young
able moments" (i.e., opportunitiesadult:
forA prospective
parents study to
of parent-child relations
during the transition
instruct their children about responsible financial to adulthood. Journal of
Marriage and the
management). In addition to promoting Family, 59, 670 - 686.
financial
competence of young adults, Bagozzi,
theseR.discussions
P., Yi,Y., & Phillips, L. W. (1991).
Assessing construct validity in organizational
may improve relationship quality between par-
research. Administrative Science Quarterly, 36(3),
ents and younger children as well as improving
421-458.
communications among siblings. Barber, B. L., Eccles, J. S., & Stone, M. R. (200
We believe that family life Whatever
educators and to the jock, the brain,
happened
financial management educatorsand need to include
the princess? Young adult pathways link
ways to connect with parents as part of their
to adolescent les- involvement and soci
activity
son plans. Educators may send out newsletters
identity. Journal ofor Adolescent Research, 16(5
home exercises that outline ways 429-455.
for parents to
Bell, children
initiate discussions with younger L. G., & Bell,about
D. C. (2005). Family dynamics
adolescence finances
the benefits of tracking their personal affect midlife well-being. Journal
Familythey
and to let their children know what Psychology,
expect 19(2), 198-207.
Bollen, K. A. (1989). Structural equations with late
regarding their financial coping behaviors. Both
variables. New York: John Wiley & Sons.
school and community financial educators can
Bornstein, M. H. (2002). Parenting infants. In M.
apply our findings in their educational programs,
Bornstein (Ed.), Handbook of parenting: Volum
teaching sound family financing practices
1, children to
and parenting (pp. 3-43). Mahwa
both youth in their programs and, through them,
NJ: Erlbaum.
to their parents. College freshmen
Cohen, M.,orientation
Ben-Zur, H., & Rosenfeld, M. J. (2008).
programs for parents and college Sensenewsletters
of coherence, coping strategies, and test
sent to parents could provide information
anxiety as predictors about
of test performance among
the importance of parents' financial expecta-
college students. International Journal of Stress
tions of children on positiveManagement,
adjustment 15, 289-303.
to
college particularly during theColeman, R. P. (1983).tran-
first-year The continuing significance
of social
sition. Providing parents with tips forclass initiating
to marketing. Journal of Consumer
Research, 70,265-280.
conversations about financial topics as well as
Davis, M, Banks, S., Fisher, W., & Grudzinska, A.
available resources for both parents and children
(2004). Longitudinal patterns of offending during
may be especially helpful.
the transition to adulthood in youth from the mental
health system. Journal of Behavioral Health
Note Services and Research, 31, 351 -366.
De Goede, I. H. A., Branje, S. J. T., & Meeus, W. H.
This study has been made possible through the generous sup-
port of the National Endowment for Financial Education®
J. (2009). Developmental changes in adolescents'
(NEFE). The authors would like to thank NEFE® for their perceptions of relationships with their parents.
Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 38, 75-88.
dedication to research, education, and outreach in promoting
Diener, E. (1984). Subjective well-being. Psycholog-
financial literacy. We also wish to thank student respondents
who participated in the APLUS study. ical Bulletin, 95(3), 542-575.
Dotterer, A. M, McHale, S. M., & Crouter, A. C.
References (2009). The development and correlates of
academic interests from childhood through ado-
Agliata, A. K., & Renk, K. (2008). College students'
lescence. Journal of Educational Psychology, 101,
adjustment: The role of parent-college student
509-519.

This content downloaded from 203.189.120.32 on Tue, 18 Feb 2020 07:51:00 UTC
All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms
 464 Family Relations

Duncan, G. Nash, S. G., &

J., McQueen, A., & Bray, J. (2005).
Brooks-G
poverty, Pathways to adolescent
welfare reform,alcohol use: Family envi- an
Child Development, 77(1), 188-196. ronment, peer influence, and parental expectations.
Dyson, R., & Renk, K. (2006). Freshmen adaptation Journal of Adolescent Health. 37. 19-28.
to university life: Depressive symptoms, stress,Olshavsky, R. W., & Granbois, D. H. (1979). Con
and coping. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 62, sumer decision making: Fact or fiction? The
1231-1244. Journal of Consumer Research, 6(2), 93 - 100.
Olson, D.H. (1977). Views of relationships. In
Eisenberg, N., Losoya, S., Fabes, R. A., Guthrie,
G. Levinger & H. L. Rausch (Eds.), Close rela-
I. K., Reiser, M., Murphy, B., Shepard, S. A.,
tionships: Perspectives on the meaning of intimacy
Poulin, R., & Padgett, S. J. (2001). Parental social-
ization of children's dysregulated expression(pp.
of 115-135). Amherst, MA: University of Mas-
emotion and externalizing problems. Journal sachusetts
of Press.

Family Psychology, 15, 183-205. Paulson, S. E., & Sputa, C. L. (1996). Patterns of
parenting during adolescence: Perceptions of ado-
Gan, Y., Yang, M., Zhou, Y., & Zhang, Y. (2007).
lescents and parents. Adolescence, 31, 369-381.
The two-factor structure of future-oriented coping
and its mediating role in student engagement.Pinto,
Per- M. B., Parente, D. H., & Mansfield, P. N.
(2005). Information learned from socialization
sonality and Individual Differences, 43, 851 -863.
Greenglass, E. R., & Fiksenbaum, L. (2009). Proac-agents: Its relationship to credit card use. Fam-
ily and Consumer Sciences Research Journal, 33,
tive coping, positive affect, and well-being. Euro-
357-367.
pean Psychologist, 14, 29-39.
Grinstein-Weiss, M., Yeo, Y. H., Irish, K., & Schoeni,
Zhan, R. F., & Ross, K. E. (2005). Material assi
tance from families during the transition to adult
M. (2009). Parental assets: A pathway to positive
hood. In R. A. Settersten, F. F. Furstenberg, &
child educational outcomes. Journal of Sociology
and Social Welfare, 36, 61 -85. R. G. Rumbaut (Eds.), On the frontier of adult
hood
Hair, J. F., Jr., Anderson, R. E., Tatham, R. T., & (pp. 396-416). Chicago: The University o
Chicago Press.
Black, W.C. (1998). Multivariate data analysis
Schwarzer, R., & Knoll, N. (2003). Positive copin
(5th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Hilaker, B. D., Brophy-Herb, H. E., Villarruel, F.Mastering
A., demands and searching for meaning. In
S. J. Lopez &C.R. SnydGT (Eds.), Positive psycho
& Haas, B. E. (2008). The contributions of parent-
logical
ing to social competencies and positive values in assessment (pp. 393-409). Washington,
DC: American Psychological Association.
middle school youth: Positive family communica-
Shim, S., Barber, B. L., Card, N., Xiao, J. J., &
tion, maintaining standards, and supportive family
relationships. Family Relations, 57, 591-601. Serido, J. (in press). Pathways to life success: A
Holahan, C. J., Valentiner, D. P., & Moos, R. H.conceptual model of financial well-being for youn
adults. Journal of Youth and Adolescence.
(1994). Parental support and psychological adjust-
Staats,
ment during the transition to young adulthood in S., Cosmar, D., & Kaffenberger, J. (2007
Sources of happiness and stress for college
a college sample. Journal of Family Psychology,
8(2' 215-223. students: A replication and comparison over
20 years. Psychological Reports, 101, 685-696.
Kim, D. (2007). The effect of loans on students'
Wang,
degree attainment: Differences by student and L., & Heppner, P. P. (2002). Assessing th
institutional characteristics. Harvard Educational impact of parental expectations and psychological
Review, 77, 64-100. distress on Taiwanese college students. The
Counseling Psvcholoeist, 30, 582-608.
Lau, R. R., Quadrei, M. J., & Hartman, K. A. (1990).
Development and change of young adult's Webley, P., & Nyhus, E. K. (2006). Parents' influ-
ence on children's future orientation and saving.
preventive health beliefs and behavior: Influence
from parents and peers. Journal of Health and Journal of Economic Psychology, 27, 140- 164.
Social Behavior, 31, 240-259. Xiao, J. J. (Ed.). (2008). Handbook of consumer
MacKinnon, D. P., Lockwood, C.M., Hoffman, finance research. New York: Springer.
J. M., West, S. G., & Sheets, V. (2002). A com- Xiao, J. J., Tang, C, & Shim, S. (2008). Acting for
happiness: Financial behavior and life satisfaction
parison of methods to test mediation and other
of college students. Social Indicator Research,
intervening variable effects. Psychological Meth-
ods, 7,83-104. 92(1), 53-68.
Youniss, J., & Smollar, J. (1989). Transformations in
Moschis, G. P. (1985). The role of family communi-
cation in consumer socialization of children and adolescents' perceptions of parents. International
Journal of Behavioral Development, 12, 71 - 84.
adolescents. Journal of Consumer Research, 11,
893-913. Zhang, Q., & Wang, Y. (2004). Trends in the asso-
ciation between obesity and socioeconomic status
Moschis, G. P. (1987). Consumer socialization: A
in U.S. adults: 1971 to 2000. Obesity Research,
life-cycle perspective. Lexington, MA: Lexington
Books. 72(10), 1622-1632.

This content downloaded from 203.189.120.32 on Tue, 18 Feb 2020 07:51:00 UTC
All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms