Young Ages, Big Decisions: Development and Initial Validation of the Multidimensional Financial Literacy Scale for Adolescents

Abstract

This study developed the Financial Literacy Scale for Adolescents (FLSADO) to assess adolescents’ financial literacy and examined its psychometric properties. Exploratory (n = 382) and confirmatory (n = 512) factor analyses revealed an 18-item scale with three subscales: conscious consumption, savings and future planning, and the meaning of money, explaining 50.16% of the variance. A brief five-item version (FLSADO-5) was created based on EFA loadings, representing all sub-dimensions and accounting for 33.92% of the variance. CFA supported both the three-factor structure of FLSADO and the unidimensional structure of FLSADO-5. Internal consistency coefficients indicated good reliability for both versions. Correlations with external measures supported concurrent validity.