Factors Influencing Personal Finance Management Among the Students of University College of Technology Sarawak (UCTS)

Abstract

Young adults generally learn their skills from parents and teachers as children. However, parents often overlook teaching financial skills, such as budgeting and investing, while their children are still living at home. Consequently, children are forced to learn how to handle their finances after leaving home, entering colleges or universities. Sometimes they may make mistakes that would cost them several years of repayment of loans. This research therefore examined the prime factors of University College of Technology Sarawak (UCTS) students on managing their personal finance, and the relations between each influencing factor with the youth financial knowledge at UCTS by the using Theory of Planned Behaviour (TBP). The resulting analysis and interpretation provided a description of the influence of cash management and credit management behaviour related to students' financial knowledge. The qualitative method in this study derived from a constructive perspective. The outcome of this study is that the influence of family members is important yet complicated for personal financial management behaviour. Based on the findings, three primary categories with supporting factors emerged as the critical components of each category. These three primary categories represent a conceptual framework for the students' personal financial management.