People

I am interested in financial behavior as a bidirectional and unfolding family process. Specifically, I study how families communicate and interact about finances and how these processes affect financial behavior. My research focuses on three interrelated life domains: (1) financial parenting; (2) financial behavior and economic well-being; and (3) financial behavior and romantic relationships.

APLUS Pathways to Life Success: Young adult autonomy can be viewed as the foundation for adult thriving. In this research, adult thriving is defined as higher levels of well-being across multiple life domains.  APLUS is the first ever longitudinal study to examine the connection between finances and well-being. how young people develop financial behaviors and how those behaviors relate to financial capability and well-being as adults. With five waves of survey data collected over 8 years from a single cohort of college freshmen, the APLUS study has become a key reference point for insights into how college educated millennials perceive financial well-being and life quality.

Financial parenting: In this line of research, I examine the ways that parents influence the financial behaviors of their children, and how parenting practices promote self-reliance or continued dependence. My long tem research goal is to explore the associations between parenting practices and age-appropriate financial behaviors among low income and ethnically diverse youth. 

Financial behavior and economic well-being: Because economic inclusion is important for families and for the economy, I seek to understand how people cope with changing financial and social demands. The insights from this research identify what information and skills people need to make informed financial choices.

Financial behavior and early romantic relationships: Early adulthood is a time for forming committed romantic relationships. In this line of research, I examine how young adults in the early stages of a romantic relationship integrate their own family financial norms and values with a partner’s family financial norms and values.

Much of my work draws from studies using the Arizona Pathways to Life Success for University Students (APLUS), a ten-year longitudinal research study of a 2007 cohort of college students. I was the Principal Investigator of this multidisciplinary initiative that examined the association between early adult financial behaviors and adult life success.

Outreach & Engagement

Outreach means seeking opportunities to disseminate research findings beyond academic audiences, to engage practitioners and educators who work with youth and families in the community.

At the state and local level, I speak about strategies that parents and teachers can use to help youth make more informed age-appropriate financial choices (MPR, WCCO, Minnesota Daily, Mom Enough)

At the national level, I provide insights on financial issues affecting college students, particularly regarding college classes in personal finance (Chronicle of Higher Education)

I also participate in discussions to inform national policy for improving the financial capability of Americans with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the National Endowment for Financial Education (NEFE), the Federal Reserve (Boston, Minneapolis, and Oklahoma City), the Corporation for Enterprise Development (CFED), The Society for Financial Education and Professional Development, the Jump$tart Coalition, the Department of Defense Military Families Learning Network, and The Society for Financial Education and Professional Development.