The Impact of Digital Financial Literacy and Financial Behavior on the Mental Well-being of Gen Z in the Digital Economy Era

DOI

10.2991/978-94-6239-809-2_19How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Digital Economy; Digital Financial Literacy; Financial Behavior; Gen-Z; Mental Well-Being

Abstract

The swift expansion of the digital economy has made Generation Z the primary consumers of digital financial platforms; as a result, their digital financial literacy (DFL) alongside their financial conduct significantly affects their psychological wellness. However, empirical investigations focusing on the joint influence of both factors on the mental health of Indonesia’s Gen Z demographic are still limited. This research intends to evaluate both individual and concurrent impacts of DFL and financial behavior on the psychological well-being of Gen Z. Utilizing a quantitative descriptive-correlational approach, empirical data were gathered from 100 participants aged 17–28 through a structured online survey and evaluated via multiple linear regression analysis. The measurement instruments demonstrated robust reliability, and the empirical model fulfilled all classical statistical assumptions, confirming its analytical validity. The empirical findings reveal that DFL and financial behavior exert a positive and statistically significant influence on mental well-being, where DFL serves as the primary predictor relative to financial behavior. Furthermore, both factors displayed a substantial joint effect, demonstrating that digital financial knowledge and monetary actions act synergistically to nurture the psychological health of the youth demographic. These insights support Social Cognitive Theory and the Theory of Planned Behavior in the setting of Gen Z digital finance, filling a crucial literature gap concerning emerging economies. Consequently, these findings offer actionable insights for designing educational initiatives and policies that enhance digital financial capabilities to support youth mental wellness.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Gede Sedana Wibawa Yasa
AU  - Made Ayu Jayanti Prita Utami
AU  - Ni Putu Rita Sintadevi
AU  - I Made Adhi Wirayana
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/24
TI  - The Impact of Digital Financial Literacy and Financial Behavior on the Mental Well-being of Gen Z in the Digital Economy Era
BT  - Proceedings of the International Conference on Sustainable Green Tourism Applied Science - Social Applied Science 2026 (ICoSTAS-SAS 2026)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 184
EP  - 193
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6239-809-2_19
DO  - 10.2991/978-94-6239-809-2_19
ID  - Yasa2026
ER  -