ASSESSING THE FINANCIAL LITERACY KNOWLEDGE AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC WELL-BEING OF YOUNG ADULTS IN MUSHIN LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF LAGOS STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

In today's economy, many young adults grapple with significant challenges such as the urge to indulge in life's luxuries and the difficulty in distinguishing between wants and needs. This struggle often hampers their ability to save for future necessities, ultimately negatively impacting their overall well-being. This study, therefore, examined the knowledge of financial literacy and the socio-economic well-being of young adults in the Mushin Area of Lagos state, Nigeria. Three research questions and two hypotheses were answered and tested to guide this study. Descriptive survey research design was adopted for the study whose population comprised all young adults in the Mushin area of Lagos state. Purposive sampling technique was used to select one hundred and sixty-five (165) respondents between the ages of (18-30) from 11 households in the Mushin area of Lagos state. This selection was based on accessibility, readiness to participate in the study, and participation in literacy classes at the literacy centers in Mushin. Structured questionnaire was designed to elicit responses from the respondents. The bio-data and research questions were analyzed with the use of frequency counts, simple percentages, and mean, while the hypotheses were tested using Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient (PPMC) and Simple linear regression at 0.05 significance level with the aid of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25. Findings from the study revealed that there is a poor knowledge of financial literacy among young adults in Mushin leading to poor saving and spending habits, among others. The study underscores the importance of financial literacy skills for the economic prosperity of young people in Nigeria. Based on the study’s findings, it was recommended that the State Agency for Mass Education (SAME) should inculcate financial literacy into the curriculum of the literacy school centers to improve the financial knowledge of adult learners in the Mushin area of Lagos state, inter alia.