The assessment of integrative potential of simple and compound interest models in increasing students’ financial literacy

Introduction. The article studies the contradiction between the unprecedented surge in financial technologies, which determines the relevance of financial decision-making, and the lack of the educational process organization in an economic university that takes into account the cumulative effect of using formalized models of simple and compound interests in terms of integrating academic disciplines. The objectives of the study are (1) to identify opportunities to increase students’ financial literacy using the integrative potential of academic disciplines and (2) to assess the relationship between skills in applying formalized methods of financial decision-making based on the models of simple and compound interests, and the dynamics of financial literacy that contributes to positive financial behaviors. Materials and Methods. The methodological basis of the study is the Pareto principle, or the 20/80 rule, which says that 20 % of efforts give 80 % of the result and vice versa. Financial literacy of 224 students of Omsk economic universities was evaluated by means of an online survey. The questions reflected the objective level of respondents’ financial literacy, the subjective level and the need for further knowledge and skills in financial literacy. Results. The study has identified the possibilities of increasing students’ financial literacy by using formalized models of simple and compound interests in terms of integrating academic disciplines. The results of the analysis confirm that a higher level of financial literacy correlates to skills in applying simple and compound interest models and reveal a positive dynamics of the cumulative effect of integrating academic disciplines. The use of the Pareto principle in this study confirms that skills in applying formalized models of simple and compound interests, which account for about 20 % of financial literacy (in terms of attitudes, knowledge and skills), determine 80 % of the positive dynamics in the overall financial literacy level. Based on the findings, recommendations for managing educational process in order to ensure the positive dynamics of digital financial literacy have been provided. Conclusions. The study suggests that it is a promising idea to use the integrative potential of simple and compound interest models in increasing financial literacy that contributes to positive financial behaviors of economic university graduates.