Becoming Financially Self-Sufficient: Developing a Need-Supportive and Need-Thwarting Scale for Financial Parenting of Emerging Adults

J Pers Assess. 2023 Mar-Apr;105(2):215-226. doi: 10.1080/00223891.2022.2075268. Epub 2022 May 20.

Abstract

The shift in the parent-child relationship during the transition to adulthood presumes that emerging adults progress toward financial self-sufficiency. Research indicates that financial parenting contributes to success in this transition, and these effects extend beyond the financial domain. Nevertheless, there is a lack of theory-based tools to measure relevant financial parenting aspects. By applying the six dimensions of interpersonal behaviors outlined in the Self-Determination Theory (SDT), the current study develops a scale targeting the interpersonal style of financial parenting. To validate the scale, it also tests seven preregistered hypotheses predicting internal structure and associations with relevant external variables in a sample of 600 emerging adults (Mage =24.94, SDage = 3.03, range 19-29 years; 52.3% women). The sample, diverse occupational status characteristics, was recruited from an online survey panel using the controlled quota sampling strategy. While study results provide modest evidence for a hypothesized six-factor structure and advocate instead for a more parsimonious two-dimensional one, results provide evidence for the new scale's convergent, discriminant, criterion, and incremental validity. This is the first study that brings SDT into family financial socialization research and opens a new line of research on family financial socialization, achievement of financial self-sufficiency, and emerging adults' wellbeing.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Parent-Child Relations
  • Parenting*
  • Personal Autonomy
  • Socialization*
  • Surveys and Questionnaires
  • Young Adult