Financial Literacy for Navigating an Aging Society

Abstract

Thailand's inevitable transition into an aging society will significantly impact the individual, social, and economic levels. This shift will particularly affect the working-age population, which will bear increased responsibilities in caring for the elderly, thereby putting more pressure on them to enhance the country's productivity. The country may face a labor shortage and a fiscal crisis due to the government's burden on elderly welfare. Additionally, the elderly population suffering from a lack of savings will face limitations in maintaining a good quality of life. Current development approaches primarily involve using government-driven social structures to dictate behaviors, such as mandatory retirement savings, which are largely external and governmental responsibilities in the form of social welfare systems, such as national pension schemes. While these measures are beneficial and necessary, they may not comprehensively address the problem. An equally important aspect is cultivating good individual characteristics or behaviors, reflecting self-discipline, which remains crucial for future development. This involves empowering the elderly to be self-reliant, particularly by ensuring financial preparedness. This goal necessitates establishing processes that can enhance financial literacy among the population before they reach old age.

By synthesizing knowledge and integrating social science theories, we can highlight the importance of instilling financial literacy from a young age, gradually accumulating human capital over time in individuals. From behavioral and development economics perspectives, cultivating good financial characteristics or behaviors becomes a customary practice, or "Habitus," fostering self-discipline. From the perspective of practice theory, those with financial literacy exhibit financial knowledge, financial skills, financial attitudes, and financial behaviors. The interdisciplinary integration of social theories is therefore valuable for learning, understanding society, and applying this knowledge for individual benefit, preparing for the challenges of an aging society.