Community intervention strategies to reduce the impact of financial strain and promote financial well-being: a comprehensive rapid review

Abstract

Financial well-being describes when people feel able to meet their financial obligations, feel financially secure and are able to make choices that benefit their quality of life. Financial strain occurs when people are unable to pay their bills, feel stressed about money and experience negative impacts on their quality of life and health. In the face of the global economic repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic, community-led approaches are required to address the setting-specific needs of residents and reduce the adverse impacts of widespread financial strain. To encourage evidence-informed best practices, a provincial health authority and community-engaged research centre collaborated to conduct a rapid review. We augmented the rapid review with an environmental scan and interviews. Our data focused on Western Canada and was collected prior to the pandemic (May–September 2019). We identified eight categories of community-led strategies to promote financial well-being: systems navigation and access; financial literacy and skills; emergency financial assistance; asset building; events and attractions; employment and educational support; transportation; and housing. We noted significant gaps in the evidence, including methodological limitations of the included studies (e.g. generalisability, small sample size), a lack of reporting on the mechanisms leading to the outcomes and evaluation of long-term impacts, sparse practice-based data on evaluation methods and outcomes, and limited intervention details in the published literature. Critically, few of the included interventions specifically targeted financial strain and/or well-being. We discuss the implications of these gaps in addition to possibilities and priorities for future research and practice. We also consider the results in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic consequences.

Financial interventions for family caregivers of individuals with chronic illness: a scoping review protocol

“…Articles containing experimental and quasi-experimental research methods with a full description of a financial intervention will be included. Financial interventions will be those that specifically target an aspect of financial well-being including, but not limited to, the following: systems navigation and access; financial literacy and skills; financial assistance; asset building; events or attractions; paid leave; employment and educational support; transportation; housing 15. Mixed methods or multi-method articles will be included if there are experimental and quasi-experimental research methods that include a financial intervention.…”

“…Financial interventions will be those that specifically target an aspect of financial well-being including, but not limited to, the following: systems navigation and access; financial literacy and skills; financial assistance; asset building; events or attractions; paid leave; employment and educational support; transportation; housing. 15 Mixed methods or multi-method articles will be included if there are experimental and quasi-experimental research methods that include a financial intervention. Articles, dissertations or theses will be excluded if they are not available in English, family caregiver data are indistinguishable from care recipient data, they are solely qualitative in nature, or they do not include primary study data such as study protocols, reviews, commentaries or metasyntheses.…”

“…This will fill a research gap because there are no existing scoping reviews addressing financial interventions in family caregivers. Financial interventions are defined as interventions that address one or multiple dimensions of financial burden/well-being including systems navigation and access, financial literacy or assistance, asset building, events or attractions, paid leave, employment and educational support, and transportation and housing 15. There is global variability with healthcare delivery and funding and governmental support for family caregiving, so healthcare context will be noted to provide a deeper understanding of the interventions 16.…”

“…Financial interventions are defined as interventions that address one or multiple dimensions of financial burden/well-being including systems navigation and access, financial literacy or assistance, asset building, events or attractions, paid leave, employment and educational support, and transportation and housing. 15 There is global variability with healthcare delivery and funding and governmental support for family caregiving, so healthcare context will be noted to provide a deeper understanding of the interventions. 16 We are using a scoping review methodology because we are answering a broad question and seeking to determine the depth, range and nature of financial interventions in family caregiving.…”

The Influence of Financial Knowledge, Financial Socialization, Financial Behaviour, and Financial Strain on Young Adults’ Financial Well-Being

“…Sabri and Zakaria (2015) revealed a negative correlation between financial strain and young employees' financial well-being. Moreover, in their review Glenn et al (2021) on "community intervention strategies to reduce the impact of financial strain and promote financial wellbeing" highlighted the necessitates of community-led action to support societal recovery of financial strain to enhance the financial well-being and to minimize the negative impacts of COVID-19 pandemic on households financial well-being.…”