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Instructional materials and tools that can increase your understanding of the Federal Reserve system, economics and financial education. All of the Fed web sites, curriculum, newsletters, booklets and other resources are free.

Website with information on how the Federal Reserve can help If you have a problem with a bank or other financial institution. You can file your complaint using the online complaint form on the site or download and send your complaint via fax or mail using our PDF form.

This Department of Agriculture website provides information on an array of topics around Financial Security. It includes information on the work of land-grant university partners and Cooperative Extension, to help youth, economically-vulnerable individuals and families, and consumers making financial decisions. It also includes information on research focused on household savings behavior and family-owned businesses.

Abstract: American women tend to be less financially literate than men, which is consistent with a household division of labor in which men manage finances. However, women also tend to outlive their husbands, so they will eventually need to take over this task. Using a new survey of older couples, I find that women acquire financial literacy as they approach widowhood. At an estimated increase of 0.04 standard deviations per year approaching widowhood, 80 percent of women in the sample would catch up with their husbands prior to the expected onset of widowhood.

We present new experimental evidence on heterogeneity in the formation of inflation expectations and relate the variation to economic literacy and demographics. The experimental design allows us to investigate two channels through which expectations-formation may vary across individuals: (1) the choice of information and (2) the use of given information. Subjects who are more economically literate perform better along both dimensions—they choose more-relevant information and make better use of given information.

Household financial planning can be challenging and household members often lack basic financial literacy skills. This paper discusses the potential and pitfalls of one approach to solving these problems—the development and dissemination of financial guidelines simple enough to be explained in graphic form. The discussion is motivated by the history of nutritional guidelines, namely the Food Pyramid and MyPlate.

This report describes several linked empirical studies that examine the activities of public libraries in increasing the financial literacy of their service population. It describes a qualitative field study of librarians’ perceptions of the challenges in offering financial literacy-based information and services, and a parallel study of the perceptions of six “partners” – or outside organizations or individuals - that work with libraries to offer programs and services.

Abstract: American parents, teachers, and policymakers generally express strong support for personal financial education for high school students, despite a need for further research to determine if such education is effective in improving long-term decision-making capabilities. However, research in related fields such as child development and behavioral economics suggests that personal financial learning begins at an early age and encompasses a broad array of general decision-making skills rather than just narrowly financial topics.

This letter provides additional information about federal financial literacy activities that were addressed in two reports to Congress issued in March 2011, Opportunities to Reduce Potential Duplication in Government Programs, Save Tax Dollars, and Enhance Revenue and List of Selected Federal Programs That Have Similar or Overlapping Objectives, Provide Similar Services, or Are Fragmented Across Government Missions.