Financial Education, Age, and Gender: A Mixed-Effects Study of Financial Literacy in Japan

Abstract

This study investigates how formal and household financial education shape adult financial literacy in Japan using nationally representative surveys from 2016 to 2022 and linear mixed-effects models, allowing education effects to vary across age cohorts. The results show that formal education programs yield the largest gains in early adulthood, but these effects diminish with age, which is consistent with the learning-decay mechanism. A supplementary analysis focusing on knowledge-based literacy clarifies that formal education primarily strengthens the cognitive core of literacy. Additionally, this cognitive benefit remains comparatively stable across age groups. Gender differences are pronounced: women start with lower baseline literacy yet display stronger and more persistent gains, indicating that financial education is an equalizing mechanism to mitigate gender disparities. Overall, financial education effects are strongest in youth but fade without continued reinforcement, underscoring the importance of sustained, inclusive, and gender-sensitive financial learning throughout adulthood.