Earlier this week, the CFPB issued a report entitled “Rigorous evaluation of financial capability strategies: Why, when and how.” The report is an outgrowth of research the CFPB is conducting to learn what approaches to financial education are most effective. The research is intended to inform the CFPB’s efforts to develop and implement financial education initiatives aimed at improving financial decision making and outcomes (which the CFPB refers to as “financial capability strategies”).
The report states that its purpose is to share insights obtained from a roundtable the CFPB convened on the use of randomized controlled trials to measure the impact of financial education programs. It is directed at “other researchers, practitioners, and funders undertaking or contemplating rigorous research into the effectiveness of different financial capability approaches.”