Duration: 10/01/2015 to 09/30/2020

Administrative Advisor(s):

NIFA Reps:

Non-Technical Summary

Statement of Issues and Justification

Family economics examines how individuals/families obtain and use resources such as money, time, human capital, material resources, and community services. It explores the relationship between individuals/families and the larger economy and studying the impact of financial issues, policies, and programs on family economic well-being. A major purpose of NCCC052 is facilitating collaboration among family economics researchers. The committee provides a forum to examine research methodologies and family economic issues in depth from a multidisciplinary perspective. The committee also fosters the development of research projects related to the economic well-being of individuals/families that are of interest to multiple land-grant institutions across the U.S. For example, NCCC052 has served as a catalyst to launch regional research projects such as NC2172, Financial Decision-Making Across the Lifespan and NC1013, The Economic and Psychological Determinants of Household Savings.


Family economics “issues,” such as low savings rates, high household debt, lack of financial capability, and low health insurance literacy are a concern to U.S. households, researchers, and government policy makers. The seventh annual America Saves Week national survey in 2014 found that only one-third of Americans feel prepared for their long-term financial future (see http://www.consumerfed.org/news/752). According to the 2014 Retirement Confidence Survey (see http://www.ebri.org/pdf/surveys/rcs/2014/EBRI_IB_397_Mar14.RCS.pdf) , only 57% of U.S. workers are currently saving money for retirement and 60% have less than $25,000 in savings/investments, excluding the value of a primary home and defined benefit pension. This includes 36% who say they have less than $1,000 in savings. Fifty-eight percent of workers reported having a problem with their level of debt. Outstanding debt is a financial handicap for many families. As debt increases, so does the risk of financial failure. Excessive debt also has ties to fraud. According to FTC research, the single most salient predictor of vulnerability to fraud is not age, education, race, or gender. It is whether individuals have more debt than they can comfortably handle (see http://www.questia.com/library/journal/1G1-339730092/debt-s-dilemmas-acci-s-annual-colston-warne-lecture).


Over the next 5 years, the NCCC052 committee will continue to promote rigorous and relevant research and set research priorities for multi-state and national work on issues germane to the economic well-being of families. The committee will strive to increase the number of multi-state, multidisciplinary research projects on current and emerging family economics issues such as relationships between health and financial well-being, health insurance literacy, student loan debt, best practices in financial education, retirement income adequacy, financial decision-making, and behavioral finance, among others. To enhance continued professional development of scholars, the committee will provide opportunities for scholars to build partnerships and develop grant-writing skills to secure research funding. The committee will also seek to organize research sessions at major conferences related to family and consumer economics such as the American Council on Consumer Interests [ACCI] and the Association of Financial Counseling and Planning Education [AFCPE]) as well as at public policy oriented meetings such as the Association for Public Policy, Analysis, and Management [APPAM]) and Family and Consumer Sciences profession meetings such as the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences [AAFCS] and the National Council on Family Relations [NCFR]). These presentations will provide a forum to showcase the latest research methodologies and empirical techniques being used in the profession as well as provide useful research implications for grassroots financial practitioners such as Cooperative Extension agents and financial counselors.


The work of coordinating committee members should ultimately improve the lives of American citizens. Often this is done indirectly through the application of research findings by financial practitioners such as those noted above. Another way that NCCC052 plans to extend its members’ research to financial practitioners, thereby positively impacting the financial health of Americans, is through research briefs. Members will be encouraged to write a short synopsis of the methodology and implications of their research for online posting via the Personal Finance Research Briefs page of eXtension (see http://www.extension.org/pages/18203/financial-security-for-all-research).


A key document that will inform the work of NCCC052 going forward is 2012 Research Priorities and Research Questions produced by the Financial Literacy and Education Commission (FLEC) Research and Evaluation Working Group following a national symposium with key stakeholders (see http://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/financial-education/Documents/2012%20Research%20Priorities%20-%20May%2012.pdf). NIFA-USDA was a key participant. The FLEC research symposium identified nine top issues as priority areas for financial literacy research, including several that closely mesh with previous or planned research by NCCC052 committee members. These priorities include evaluating the effectiveness of financial education for youth and adults, examining factors that motivate people to start or maintain positive financial habits, and identifying and evaluating potential synergies between programs that target financial capability and those targeting physical and mental health.

Objectives

Procedures and Activities

October 2015- September 2016
Full committee holds its FY 2016 annual meeting face-to-face or via a video chat platform. Goals to accomplish include: reporting individual experiment station accomplishments, reporting on the progress of affiliated research groups (e.g., NC2172), determining emerging family economics issues, setting research priorities for multistate work, developing plans for the timely analysis of data and dissemination of research findings, networking to create partnerships among family economics professionals, setting future meeting dates, times, and agendas, and setting and reviewing individual or small group assignments such as writing research briefs and submitting grant proposals, journal article manuscripts, and conference proposals. Members work on planned individual and small group research-related activities throughout the year. During our first meeting we will focus on recruiting additional researchers to our team.

October 2016- September 2017
Full committee holds its FY 2017 annual meeting face-to-face or via a video chat platform. Goals to accomplish include: reporting individual experiment station accomplishments, reporting on the progress of affiliated research groups (e.g., NC2172), determining emerging family economics issues, setting research priorities for multistate work, developing plans for the timely analysis of data and dissemination of research findings, networking to create partnerships among family economics professionals, setting future meeting dates, times, and agendas, and setting and reviewing individual or small group assignments such as writing research briefs and submitting grant proposals, journal article manuscripts, and conference proposals. Members work on planned individual and small group research-related activities throughout the year. During this meeting we will pair any new members with an existing member to promote collaboration and retention of the membership.

October 2017- September 2018
Full committee holds its FY 2018 annual meeting face-to-face or via a video chat platform. Goals to accomplish include: reporting individual experiment station accomplishments, reporting on the progress of affiliated research groups (e.g., NC2172), determining emerging family economics issues, setting research priorities for multistate work, developing plans for the timely analysis of data and dissemination of research findings, networking to create partnerships among family economics professionals, setting future meeting dates, times, and agendas, and setting and reviewing individual or small group assignments such as writing research briefs and submitting grant proposals, journal article manuscripts, and conference proposals. Members work on planned individual and small group research-related activities throughout the year. In this meeting we will assess the recruiting and retention activities of the previous years and recommend changes to the strategy for the following year.

October 2018- September 2019
Full committee holds its FY 2019 annual meeting face-to-face or via a video chat platform. Goals to accomplish include: reporting individual experiment station accomplishments, reporting on the progress of affiliated research groups (e.g., NC2172), determining emerging family economics issues, setting research priorities for multistate work, developing plans for the timely analysis of data and dissemination of research findings, networking to create partnerships among family economics professionals, setting future meeting dates, times, and agendas, and setting and reviewing individual or small group assignments such as writing research briefs and submitting grant proposals, journal article manuscripts, and conference proposals. Members work on planned individual and small group research-related activities throughout the year.

October 2019- September 2020
Full committee holds its FY 2020 annual meeting face-to-face or via a video chat platform. Goals to accomplish include: reporting individual experiment station accomplishments, reporting on the progress of affiliated research groups (e.g., NC2172), determining emerging family economics issues, setting research priorities for multistate work, developing plans for the timely analysis of data and dissemination of research findings, networking to create partnerships among family economics professionals, setting future meeting dates, times, and agendas, and setting and reviewing individual or small group assignments such as writing research briefs and submitting grant proposals, journal article manuscripts, and conference proposals. Members work on planned individual and small group research-related activities throughout the year. NCCC052 Committee completes planning and paperwork to reauthorize its work from October 2020 to September 2025.

Expected Outcomes and Impacts

Projected Participation

View Appendix E: Participation

Educational Plan

The NCCC_TEMP52 will work to organize research sessions at major conferences related to family and consumer economics. The group will collaborate with other researchers at major conferences such as American Council on Consumer Interests (ACCI), The Association of Financial Counseling and Planning Education (AFCPE), The National Council on Family Relations (NCFR), and the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences (AAFCS).

The 2012 Research Priorities and Research Questions produced by the Financial Literacy and Education Commission (FLEC) will help focus the needs for future research and education initiatives.

The opportunity to meet with a group of highly focused researchers on a regular basis to review what research is being done at various land-grant institutions around the country enables a host of creative ideas for future research questions. There is no substitute for a time and space for researchers to come together and critically think about issues related to consumer economics.

Organization/Governance

The NCCC_TEMP52 has an elected chair and secretary. Officer elections are held as needed, but at least every five years.

Literature Cited

Helman, R., Adams, N., Copeland, C., & VanDerhei, J. (2014, March). The 2014 Retirement Confidence Survey: Confidence rebounds - for those with retirement plans. Issue Brief, March, 2014.

Attachments

Land Grant Participating States/Institutions

IA, KS, MN, NJ, SD, VA

Non Land Grant Participating States/Institutions

Kansas State University, University of the Incarnate Word