Abstract
This study examines the relationships among emotion regulation, financial self-efficacy, and couples’ financial management behaviors using the baseline data from 239 heterosexual couples (478 individuals) enrolled in a community-based relationship and financial education program. Structural Equation Modeling was used to test an Actor-Partner Interdependence Model that examined both the individual and partner effects of emotion regulation on financial management behaviors mediated by financial self-efficacy. For both partners, there were significant effects of emotion regulation on financial self-efficacy and significant effects of financial self-efficacy on financial management. There was a significant positive, indirect association of emotion regulation with her overall financial management behaviors for female partners. There was a significant partner effect from males’ financial self-efficacy on female partners’ financial management behaviors. Implications for researchers, policymakers, and practitioners are discussed.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Addo, F. R., & Zhang, X. (2020). Debt concordance and relationship quality: A couple-level Analysis. Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 41(3), 405–423. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10834-020-09687-8. https://doi-org.proxy-um.researchport.umd.edu/
Annesi, J. J., & Vaughn, L. L. (2017). Directionality in the relationship of self-regulation, self-efficacy, and mood changes in facilitating improved physical activity and nutrition behaviors: extending behavioral theory to improve weight-loss treatment effects. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, 49, 505–512
Archuleta, K. L. (2013). Couples, money, and expectations: Negotiating financial management roles to increase relationship satisfaction. Marriage & Family Review, 49(5), 391–411. https://doi.org/10.1080/01494929.2013.766296. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/
Asebedo, S. D. (2016). Three essays on financial self-efficacy beliefs and the saving behavior of older pre-retirees. School of Family Studies and Human Services. Kansas State University. Unpublished doctoral dissertation
Asebedo, S. D. (2019). Psychosocial Attributes and Financial Self-Efficacy Among Older Adults. Journal of Financial Therapy, 10(1), 2. https://doi.org/10.4148/1944-9771.1196
Asebedo, S. D., Seay, M. C., Archuleta, K., & Brase, G. (2019). The psychological predictors of older preretirees’ financial self-efficacy. Journal of Behavioral Finance, 20(2), 127–138. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/15427560.2018.1492580
Asparouhov, T., & Muthen, B. (2010). Weighted least squares estimation with missing data. Technical Report. http:\\statmodel.com\download\GstrucMissingRevision.pdf
Atkinson, A., & Messy, F. (2012). Measuring Financial Literacy: Results of the OECD/International Network on Financial Education (INFE) Pilot Study. OECD Working Paper on Finance, Insurance, and Private Pensions No. 15, Paris, France
Babiarz, P., Robb, C. A., & Woodyard, A. (2012). Family decision making and resource protection adequacy. Journal of Consumer Affairs, 46(1), 1–36. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-6606.2012.01224.x
Baryła-Matejczuk, M., Skvarciany, V., Cwynar, A., Poleszak, W., & Cwynar, W. (2020). Link between Financial Management Behaviours and Quality of Relationship and Overall Life Satisfaction among Married and Cohabiting Couples: Insights from Application of Artificial Neural Networks. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(4), https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17041190. https://doi-org.proxy-um.researchport.umd.edu/
Bandura, A. (1977). Social Learning Theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-hall
Bandura, A. (1982). Self-efficacy mechanism in human agency. American Psychologist, 37, 122-147.Barrett, P. (2007). Structural equation modeling: Adjudging model fit. Personality and Individual Differences, 42(5), 815–824. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2006.09.018
Baumeister, R. F. (2002). Yielding to temptation: Self-control failure, impulsive purchasing, and consumer behavior. Journal of Consumer Research, 28, 670–676. Doi:0093-5301/2002/2804-0011
Bertocchi, G., Brunetti, M., & Torricelli, C. (2014). Who holds the purse strings within the household? The determinants of intra-family decision making. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 101, 65–86. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jebo.2014.02.012
Bloch, L., Haase, C., & Levenson, R. (2013). Emotion regulation predicts marital satisfaction: More than a wives’ tale. Emotion, 14(1), 130–144. doi:https://doi.org/10.1037/a0034272
Bucher-Koenen, T., Alessie, R. J., Lusardi, A., & van Rooij, M. (2021). Fearless Woman: Financial literacy and stock market participation. NBER Working Paper 28723 DOI https://doi.org/10.3386/w28723
Cameron, L. D., & Overall, N. C. (2017). Suppression and expression as distinct emotion-regulation processes in daily interactions: longitudinal and meta-analyses. Emotion, 18, 465–480. doi: https://doi.org/10.1037/emo0000334
Claxton, S. E., Deluca, H. K., & van Dulmen, M. H. M. (2015). Testing psychometric properties in dyadic data using confirmatory factor analysis: Current practices and recommendations. Testing, Psychometrics, Methodology in Applied Psychology, 22(2), 18
Cohen, J. B., Pham, M. T., & Andrade, E. B. (2008). The nature and role of affect in consumer behavior. In C. P. Haugtvedt, P. M. Herr, & F. R. Kardes (Eds.), Handbook of Consumer Psychology (pp. 297–348). CRC Press
Collins, J. M., Eisner, R., & O’Rourke, C. (2013). Bringing Financial Coaching to Scale-the Potential of Group Coaching Models. Madison: Center for Financial Security -University of Wisconsin Madison
Côté, S., Gyurak, A., & Levenson, R. W. (2010). The ability to regulate emotion is associated with well-being, income, and socioeconomic status. Emotion, 10(6), 923–933. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1037/a0021156
Dew, J., & Xiao, J. J. (2011). Financial management behavior scale: Development and validation. Journal of Financial Counseling and Planning, 22(1), 19–35
Dew, J., Dean, L., Duncan, S. F., & Britt, L. S. (2020). A Review of Effectiveness Evidence in the Financial-Helping Fields. Family Relations, 69(3), 614–627. https://doi.org/10.1111/fare.12445. https://doi-org.proxy-um.researchport.umd.edu/
Dietz, B. E., Carrozza, M., & Ritchety, P. N. (2003). Does financial self-efficacy explain gender differences in retirement savings strategies? Journal of Women & Aging, 15(4), 83–96
Di Giunta, L., Iselin, A. M., Eisenberg, N., Pastorelli, C., Gerbino, M., Lansford, J. E., & Thartori, E. (2017). Measurement invariance and convergent validity of anger and sadness self-regulation scales among youth from six cultural groups. Assessment, 24, 484–502. https://doi.org/10.1177/1073191115615214
Farrell, L., Fry, T. R. L., & Risse, L. (2016). The significance of financial self-efficacy in explaining women’s personal finance behavior. Journal of Economic Psychology, 54, 86–99
Fenton-O’Creevy, M., Lins, J. T., Vohra, S., Richards, D. W., Davies, G., & Schaaff, K. (2012). Emotion regulation and trader expertise: Heart rate variability on the trading floor. Journal of Neuroscience, Psychology, and Economics, 5(4), 227–237
Fernandes, D., Lynch, J. G., & Netemeyer, R. G. (2014). Financial literacy, financial education, and downstream financial behaviors. Management Science, 60, 1861–1883. https://doi.org/10.1287/ mnsc.2013.1849
Filippin, A., & Paccagnella, M. (2012). Family background, self-confidence and economic outcomes. Economics of Education Review, 31(5), 824–834
Fitzpatrick, J., Gareau, A., Lafontaine, M. F., & Gaudreau, P. (2016). How to use the actor-partner interdependence model (APIM) to estimate different dyadic patterns in mPlus: A step-by-step tutorial. The Quantitative Methods for Psychology, 12(1), 74–86. https://doi.org/10.20982/tqmp.12.1.p074
Fonseca, R., Mullen, K. J., Zamarro, G., & Zissimopoulos, J. (2012). What Explains the Gender Gap in Financial Literacy? The Role of Household Decision Making. Journal of Consumer Affairs, 46(1), 90–106
Forbes, J., & Kara, S. M. (2010). Confidence mediates how investment knowledge influences investing self-efficacy. Journal of Economic Psychology, 31, 435–443
Fosse, T. H., Buch, R., Säfvenbom, R., & Martinussen, M. (2015). The impact of personality and self-efficacy on academic and military performance: The mediating role of self-efficacy, Journal of Military Studies, 6(1), 47-65. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1515/jms-2016-0197
Frye, N., Ganong, L., Jensen, T., & Coleman, M. (2020). A Dyadic Analysis of Emotion Regulation as a Moderator of Associations Between Marital Conflict and Marital Satisfaction Among First-married and Remarried Couples. Journal of Family Issues, 41(12), 2328–2355. https://doi.org/10.1177/0192513X20935504
Gamst-Klaussen, T., Steel, P., & Svartdal, F. (2019). Procrastination and Personal Finances: Exploring the Roles of Planning and Financial Self-Efficacy. Frontier Psychology, 10, 775. Doi: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00775
Gratz, K. L., & Roemer, L. (2004). Multidimensional assessment of emotion regulation and dysregulation: Development, factor structure, and initial validation of the difficulties in emotion regulation scale.Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment,14
Gross, J. J. (1998). The emerging field of emotion regulation: An integrative review. Review of General Psychology, 2(3), 271–299
Gross, J. J. (2015). Emotion regulation: Current status and future prospects. Psychological Inquiry, 26(1), 1–26. https://doi.org/10.1080/1047840X.2014.940781
Gross, J. J., & Muñoz, R. F. (1995). Emotion regulation and mental health. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 2(2), 151–164. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2850.1995.tb00036.x
Gross, J. J., Richards, J. M., & John, O. P. (2006). Emotion regulation in everyday life. In D. K. Snyder, J. A. Simpson, & J. N. Hughes (Eds.), Emotion regulation in couples and families: Pathways to dysfunction and health (pp. 13–36). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association
Gyurak, A., Gross, J. J., & Etkin, A. (2011). Explicit and implicit emotion regulation: a dual-process framework. Cognition and Emotion, 25, 400–412
Halmos, M. B., Leone, R. M., Parrott, D. J., & Eckhardt, C. I. (2021). Relationship Dissatisfaction, Emotion Regulation, and Physical Intimate Partner Aggression in Heavy-Drinking, Conflict-Prone Couples: A Dyadic Analysis. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 36(9/10), NP5385–NP5406. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260518801019
Halpern-Meekin, S., & Tach, L. (2013). Discordance in couples’ reporting of courtship stages: Implications for measurement and marital quality. Social Science Research, 42(4), 1143–1155. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssresearch.2013.01.009
Hammer, J. H. (2016). Construct Replicability Calculator: A Microsoft Excel-based tool to calculate the Hancock and Mueller (2001) H index. Available from http://DrJosephHammer.com/
Hancock, G. R., & Mueller, R. O. (2001). Rethinking construct reliability within latent variable systems. In R. Cudeck, S. du Toit, & D. Sorbom (Eds.), Structural equation modeling: Present and future—A Festschrift in honor of Karl Joreskog (pp. 195-216). Lincolnwood, IL: Scientific Software International
Hira, T. K. (2010). The NEFE quarter century project: Implications for researchers, educators, and policy makers from a quarter century of financial education, the quarter century project: 25 years of research in financial education. Denver: National Endowment for Financial Education
Hira, T. K., & Loibl, C. (2008). Gender differences in investment behavior. In J. J. Xiao (Ed.), Handbook of consumer finance research (pp. 253–270). New York: Springer
Hsu, J. W. (2011). Aging and Strategic Learning: The Impact of Spousal Incentives on Financial Literacy. Finance and Economics Discussion Series (FEDS) Working Paper No. 2011-53, Washington, DC
Hu, L., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 6(1), 1–55. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705519909540118
Hung, A. A., Parker, A. M., & Yoong, J. K. (2009). Defining and measuring financial literacy. RAND Working paper series no. 708
Kenny, D. A., Kashy, D. A., & Cook, W. L. (2006). Dyadic data analysis. New York, NY: Guilford Press
Kim, J., Garman, E. T., & Sorhaindo, B. (2003). Relationships among credit counseling clients’ financial well-being, financial behaviors, financial stressor events, and health. Journal of Financial Counseling and Planning, 4, 75–87
Kim, J., Gutter, M. S., & Spangler, T. (2017). Review of family financial decision making: Suggestions for future research and implications for financial education. Journal of Financial Counseling and Planning, 28(2), 253–267. https://doi.org/10.1891/1052-3073.28.2.253
Little, R. J. A. (1988). A test of missing completely at random for multivariate data with missing values. Journal of the American Statistical Association, 83(404), 1198–1202. https://doi.org/10.2307/2290157
Lo, A. W., Repin, D. V., & Steenbarger, B. N. (2005). Fear and Greed in Financial Markets: A Clinical Study of Day-Traders. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=690501 or https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.690501
Lown, J. M. (2011). Development of validation of a financial self-efficacy scale. Journal of Financial Counseling and Planning, 22(2), 54–63
Lusardi, A., & Mitchell, O. (2008). Planning and financial literacy: How do women fare? American Economic Review: Papers and Proceedings, 98(2), 413–417
Lusardi, A., & Mitchell, O. S. (2014). The Economic Importance of Financial Literacy: Theory and Evidence. Journal of Economic Literature, 52(1), 5–44. https://doi.org/10.1257/jel.52.1.5
Mader, K., & Schneebaum, A. (2013). The gendered nature of intra-household decision making in and across Europe (Department of Economics Working Paper No. 157). Vienna, Austria: Vienna University of Economics and Business
Martin, L. N., & Delgado, M. R. (2011). The influence of emotion regulation on decision-making under risk. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 23(9), 2569–2581. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1162/jocn.2011.21618
Medrano, L., Kanter, P. E., Moretti, L., & Pereno, G. (2016). Effects of induction of positive and negative emotional states on academic self-efficacy beliefs in college students. Psicología Educativa, 22, 135–141
Mindra, R., & Moya, M. (2017). Financial self-efficacy: A mediator in advancing financial inclusion. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion International Journal, 36, 128–149
Montford, W., & Goldsmith, R. E. (2016). How gender and financial self-efficacy influence investment risk taking. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 40, 101–106. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijcs.12219
Peeters, N., Rijk, K., Soetens, B., Storms, B., & Hermans, K. (2018). A Systematic Literature Review to Identify Successful Elements for Financial Education and Counseling in Groups. Journal of Consumer Affairs, 52(2), 415–440
Richards, J. M., Butler, E. A., & Gross, J. J. (2003). Emotion regulation in romantic relationships: The cognitive consequences of concealing feelings. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 20(5), 599–620. https://doi.org/10.1177/02654075030205002
Rizor, A., Callands, T., Desrosiers, A., & Kershaw, T. (2017). He’s Gotta Have It: Emotion Regulation, Emotional Expression, and Sexual Risk Behavior in Emerging Adult Couples. Sexual Addiction & Compulsivity, 24(3), 203–216. https://doi.org/10.1080/10720162.2017.1343700
Rodriguez, A., Reise, S. P., & Haviland, M. G. (2016). Applying bifactor statistical indices in the evaluation of psychological measures. Journal of Personality Assessment, 98(3), 223–237. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223891.2015.1089249
Rothwell, D. W., Khan, M. N., & Cherney, K. (2016). Building financial knowledge is not enough: Financial self-efficacy as a mediator in the financial capability of low-income families. Journal of Community Practice, 24(4), 368–388
Rusu, P. P., Bodenmann, G., & Kayser, K. (2019). Cognitive emotion regulation and positive dyadic outcomes in married couples. Journal of Social & Personal Relationships, 36(1), 359–376. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407517751664
Rutherford, L. G., & DeVaney, S. A. (2009). Utilizing the theory of planned behavior to understand convenience use of credit cards. Journal of Financial Counseling and Planning, 20(2), 48–63
Sagui-Henson, S. J., Armstrong, L. M., Mitchell, A. D., et al. (2020). The Effects of Parental Emotion Regulation Ability on Parenting Self-Efficacy and Child Diet. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 29, 2290–2302. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-020-01745-x
Sherraden, M. S., Huang, J., Frey, J. J., Birkenmaier, J., Callahan, C., Clancy, M., & Sherraden, M. (2015). Financial capability and asset building for all (13No. vol.). Baltimore, MD: American Academy of Social Work and Social Welfare
Sherraden, M. S., & Ansong, D. (2016). Financial Literacy to Financial Capability: Building Financial Stability and Security. In C. Aprea, K. Breuer, P. Davies, B. Fuhrman, N.K. Koh, J.S. Lopus, & E. Wuttke (Eds.), International Handbook of Financial Literacy. Springer
Shim, S., Xiao, J. J., Barber, B. L., & Lyons, A. C. (2009). Pathways to life success: a conceptual model of finanwell-beingbeing for young adults. Journal of Applied Development Psychology, 30, 708–723. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appdev.2009.02.003
Strömbäck, C., Lind, T., Skagerlund, K., Västfjäll, D., & Tinghög, G. (2017). Does self-control predict financial behavior and finanwell-beingbeing? Journal of Behavioral Experiment Finances, 14, 30–38. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbef.2017.04.002
Tamir, M. (2009). What do people want to feel and why?: Pleasure and utility in emotion regulation. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 18, 101–105
Tang, N., & Baker, A. (2016). Self-esteem, financial knowledge, and financial behavior. Journal of Economic Psychology, 54, 164–176
Topa, G., Lunceford, G., & Boyatzis, R. E. D. (2018). Financial planning for retirement: a psychosocial perspective. Frontier Psychology, 8, 2338. doi: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.02338
Victor, S. E., & Klonsky, E. D. (2016). Validation of a brief version of the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS-18) in five samples. Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 38(4), 582–589. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10862-016-9547-9
Villavicencio, F. T., & Bernardo, A. B. I. (2016). Beyond math anxiety: Positive emotions predict mathematics achievement, self-regulation, and self-efficacy. Asia-Pacific Education Research, 25, 415–422 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40299-015-0251-4
Wang, J., & Xiao, J. J. (2009). Buying behavior, social support and credit card indebtedness of college students. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 33, 2–10
Ward, A. F., & Lynch, J. G. Jr. (2019). On a Need-to-Know Basis: How the Distribution of Responsibility Between Couples Shapes Financial Literacy and Financial Outcomes. Journal of Consumer Research, 45(5), 1013–1036. https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucy037
Webb, T. L., Lindquist, K. A., Jones, K., Avishai, A., & Sheeran, P. (2018). Situation selection is a particularly effective emotion regulation strategy for people who need help regulating their emotions. Cogn. Emot, 32, 231–248. doi: https://doi.org/10.1080/02699931.2017.1295922
Woolley, F., & Marshall, J. (1994). Measuring inequality within the household. The Review of Income and Wealth, 40(4), 415–431. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-4991.1994.tb00084.x
Xiao, J. J., Collins, M., Ford, M., Keller, P., Kim, J., & Robles, B. (2010). A review of financial behavior research: Implications for financial education. Denver: National Endowment for Financial Education
Xiao, J. J., Tang, C., Serido, J., & Shim, S. (2011). Antecedents and consequences of risky credit behavior among college students: application and extension of the theory of planned behavior. Journal of Public Policy Market, 30, 239–245. doi: https://doi.org/10.1509/jppm.30.2.239
Funding
for this project was provided by the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Administration of Children and Families [Grant #90FM077-01-00; #90FM077-02-00; #90FM077-03-00].
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Publisher’s Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Kim, J., Falconier, M.K. & Conway, C.A. Relationships Among Emotion Regulation, Financial Self-Efficacy, and Financial Management Behaviors of Couples. J Fam Econ Iss 44, 342–355 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10834-022-09827-2
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10834-022-09827-2