Educación financiera y formación de capital humano: un enfoque transversal

The research presented as a doctoral thesis is based on the analysis of financial education from a pioneering perspective that considers it as specific and transversal human capital, which affects personal financial well-being and society as a whole and, consequently, has an impact on the ecosystem of sustainable finance.

It analyses the lack of homogeneity both in the definition of financial education and in the criteria for measuring levels of financial competencies, reasons that hinder the implementation of programmes and initiatives, both public and private, that enable the knowledge and skills that provide individuals with good financial health, now and in the future, to be enhanced. Moreover, this type of learning is seen as a vital tool for promoting financial inclusion, digitisation and the integration of sustainability in financial decisions, which is essential for sustained and inclusive growth.

As a result of demographic ageing and the increasing complexity of the financial environment, individuals, and in particular young people, will be forced to take increasing responsibility for their decisions. Against this backdrop, financial education, particularly in uncertain scenarios, is conducive to more resilient behaviour. It is therefore necessary to raise the levels of this competence so that informed individual financial decision-making facilitates, by extension, the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals adopted in the 2030 Agenda.

Until the beginning of this century, this area of research had barely aroused interest in the academic literature; the quantitative leap took place from 2008 onwards, coinciding with the 2008 crisis. Thus, this thesis contributes to the existing academic production through the study of financial education from a global and innovative perspective and through the use of methodologies linked to data science .

For a better understanding of this thesis, it is necessary to make some brief considerations that allude to each of the publications summarised, to this end, the purpose of the research, the methodology used for its elaboration and the end most significant conclusions are explained.

In the first article, a comprehensive analysis of specialised academic production is carried out to examine how financial education is characterised and how it is linked to the university environment. To this end, a methodology based on bibliometric analysis is used, by means of which quantitative techniques are used to measure and describe the scientific literature on this topic from 1976 to 2021, as well as to examine its conceptual framework in order to detect the thematic areas to which it is related, which allows for a holistic approach to the analysis.

This research work allows us to identify financial education as a relatively recent field of knowledge, of a transversal nature and still, at present, little consolidated from a conceptual point of view. On the other hand, it shows that there is a need for a profound revision of the educational policies that enable students to achieve financial wellbeing through appropriate management of their personal, family or business finances.

The following article, through an interpretation of the PRISMA Statement (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses), provides an exhaustive analysis of the academic productions that present data, both empirical and theoretical, relating to the measurement of the population's levels of financial literacy. As a result, it provides a compilation of the questionnaires used for this purpose since 1940, and examines the evolution over time of the sources from which they originate, the objectives pursued, as well as the most significant results extracted from such studies.

The analysis shows that there are no generalised measurable indicators to assess the levels of this competence, which makes rigorous analysis impossible and hinders the implementation of effective action plans to achieve a better future for all, as set out in the 2030 Agenda. Furthermore, it was found that those assessed, mostly students, show insufficient financial literacy and that in general these deficiencies are more evident among women, younger age groups and those with fewer resources and less educational background.

The third article highlights the role of financial education as a key element in promoting more sustainable behaviour. To this end, it examines the different interpretations that have been made in the academic literature regarding its conceptual definition, as well as their evolution, the context in which it is used and the terms with which it is related to its appearance on the social network Twitter. The combination of the academic approach with a more informal one allows the proposal of a new definition that contemplates different points of view according to different sources used.

To do so, we use scientometric and content analysis techniques to carry out a systematic review of the literature concerning our object of study, and also natural language processing (NLP) techniques to analyse the sentiments aroused by the comments extracted from Twitter posts thanks to Machine Learning.

It is concluded that this competence, which is vital in the 21st century, is needed, given that it has an impact on people's behaviour and influences decision-making that favours the achievement of one's own financial well-being. From the sentiment analysis of the speeches expressed in the tweets collected, it is observed that the emotional tone is predominantly positive.

Finally, there is a fourth article,  which includes a case study of Cyprus, with a detailed analysis of its particular situation in relation to the Sustainable Development Goals and their link to sustainable finance education.

Thus, the contribution of this thesis is threefold. On the one hand, starting from the documentary analysis of this transversal field of knowledge, the conceptual meaning of financial education is analysed, as well as the evolution of its object and scope in the moments in time when important modifications in its interpretation take place and a new definition is provided by combining a formal approach with a more informal one based on social listening on Twitter. On the other hand, it synthesises and characterises the measurable indicators used for the assessment of financial literacy based on the analysis of a research instrument such as questionnaires. And finally, it integrates sustainability as an inherent element of financial education that enables people to manage personal finances in a responsible and informed way, paying particular attention to the recent economic and financial environment, which requires the adoption of ethical, social and environmental criteria.