Determinants of Financial Behaviours among Malaysians

The importance of financial literacy in promoting good financial behaviour has been established in previous studies. Nonetheless, a study that specifically analyses Malaysian or Asian general public is very rare, despite various cases involving bankruptcies, suicides and harassment that result from improper financial decisions within the region. This study focuses on Malaysians' financial literacy and financial behaviour. It is hypothesized that financial behaviour is significantly correlated with financial literacy. It is also expected that Malaysians' financial behaviour and financial literacy vary significantly among those from different education and income levels. A quantitative approach was adopted for this study, utilizing questionnaire survey as the main research instrument. Results showed significant, positive correlation between financial literacy and financial behaviour. Moreover, less educated individuals and lower income earners were found to have lower financial literacy. This paper provides a discussion on educational programmes that could be conducted in order to enhance the public's financial literacy and promotes good financial practices, especially among these groups of individuals.