The rapid digitalization of financial services requires attention to the potential influences of new psychological variables on financial decision-making. This study presents the Digital Financial Anxiety Perception Scale (DFAPS), a multidimensional instrument developed to measure this phenomenon. The scale, consisting of 20 items distributed across four dimensions (anxiety related to security in financial applications, anxiety related to the automation and digitalization of financial services, anxiety related to usability challenges, and anxiety related to the use of financial applications), was developed following a rigorous methodological approach. In the qualitative phase, it underwent validation through focus groups, expert review, and pre-testing. In the quantitative phase, the scale was administered to two samples of 380 and 790 participants, enabling exploratory and confirmatory analyses. The results provided evidence of reliability and validity, indicating that the scale effectively captures the various dimensions of digital financial anxiety. This study provides an innovative measurement tool to address the scarcity of validated instruments in the literature, despite the growing relevance of the topic. The DFAPS is a psychometrically supported measure that enables researchers, public and private managers, and policymakers to assess individuals’ perceptions of digital financial anxiety. Thus, the instrument has potential applications in digital inclusion, financial education, and innovation in financial products and services, promoting more conscious, secure, and resilient individual financial risk management. Consequently, this study contributes to the understanding of the emotions that permeate financial behavior in the digital age, strengthening the interface between behavioral finance and technology.
We investigate the impact of a museum exhibition on the financial literacy of young people. The exhibition, titled "The Adventure of Money", took place in Rome between October 2023 and June 2024. It offered a preview of Banca d'Italia's upcoming Money Museum, which aims to stimulate interest in the main events in the history of money and finance. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of the exhibition, we conducted a randomized control trial with about 600 students from 19 Italian upper secondary schools. The results show an improvement in the students' financial knowledge, as evidenced by an increase of around one third in their initial financial competence scores. Additionally, the visit resulted in greater awareness of the role of banks, of the functions of central banks, and increased interest in economic and financial topics.
The disposition effect (DE)-the tendency to sell winning investments and hold on to losing investments-is well-documented in financial market transactions. Yet, there is little research into the types and pricing of the orders that lead to these transactions. Using a controlled laboratory experiment, we show that investors' empirical DE measures, though potentially biased by limit order mechanics, still serve as informative proxies for investors' respective DE levels. Combining our experimental results with data from retail brokerage accounts from a Belgian online broker spanning 2003-2021, we find that high-DE investors display a stronger dependence on the purchase price: they submit relatively more sell orders when positions are at a gain than at a loss; in the loss domain, they are more likely to choose sell limit prices at or above the purchase price, set these limit prices farther above prevailing market prices, and rely more on good-till-canceled instructions. Overall, our findings show that the DE is reflected not only in whether investors sell but also in how they sell, highlighting the feasibility of studying the DE from order, rather than solely from transaction, data.
