2019 Conference

Financial health, debt, young adulthood, financial behaviors, investing

The World Health Organization defines health as, “a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” In applying this same approach to financial health, we pose the following research question: Is financial health merely the absence of debt, or is it something more than that? The current study aims to better understand the financial lives of young adults who are not burdened by undergraduate student loans (N = 484) and the factors that differentiate those who are doing well from those who are struggling. We conducted analyses to create financial management clusters based on participants’ financial behaviors at Wave 4. Results revealed four financial management clusters: Responsible Non-Trackers, Responsible Trackers, Non Investors, and Flounderers. Financial management clusters differed in their gender make-up, employment status, current income, and satisfaction in multiple life domains. Ultimately, our findings point to the importance of understanding that student loan debt is just one part of the financial picture. There exists a small yet important subgroup of young adults without student loan debt who may benefit from additional programming or financial assistance to get on the right financial “track.”