Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
INTRODUCTION
Although saving is a familiar word for most people, it may not be what they actually
practice. Saving, as we know, is important as it is one of the factors contributing to national
economic growth. However, a national saving rate does not represent an individual saving
rate. Rich people generally save more than poor people as they can generate higher
income. However, this may not always be the case.
Saving is important and there has been an increasing amount of evidence indicating that
saving is beneficial for individuals and households, including those with low incomes.
Saving by young college student is even more crucial. Being able to save from young age
is beneficial as individuals will have more assets accumulated for emergency matters and
for their future economic well-being. In addition, with savings young college students are
less likely to be indebted.
In fact students actually have some reasons of doing saving, such as to achieve goal, do
saving until the end of the semester (most are for vacation), and do saving for paying down
debts. However there are some people lacking financial experience, such as college
students, financial knowledge has been identified as an important factor to improve
financial behaviour and for promoting personal financial well-being.
1
students, therefore, contribute to their saving behaviour. If they perceive saving as good
and a practical activity as they have experienced in their upbringings and lifestyle.
This is not a good sign for a developing country such as Malaysia, since it might adversely
affects the economic performance of the country in the long term. Poor financial
management has been identified as the main contributor to this problem. Early exposure
to financial management is important for the younger generation because they have
various obligations (Leach, Hayhoe, & Turner, 1999) such as paying back the loans used
to finance their university education even before they graduated.
Therefore, this research was conducted to study the attitude among students in Miri local
university and college towards savings because they are the ones that soon will earn
money, make financial investments, and their ability to do so is related to how well they
save. The findings of the research provide useful information to parents as well as public
on the importance of early financial planning exposure toward teenagers, in encouraging
savings habit.
2
Miri is home to a population of about 300,000 people, consisting of Chinese, Iban, Malay,
Indian and other indigenous groups like Melanau, Kedayan, Kayan, Kenyah, Kelabit,
Bidayuh, Penan, Lun Bawang, Berawan, Bisaya, etc. living in harmony and are proud to
contribute to make Miri a Resort City (Wikipedia, 2013, p.1).
Living in a university is a transition from childhood into adulthood (Allen, 2009) that
makes students life more challenging and tougher. Moving away from parents, living on
their own and making decisions for themselves and having to manage their own finances
are just a few of the roadblocks they will be facing. Having a plan in place beforehand and
sticking to that plan as closely as possible can help to ensure that they survive the transition
with the least stress possible.
They should learn to live within their means. Expensive electronics, going out with friends
and eating out multiple times a week are likely going to become a thing of the past. They
have to meet all financial obligations before they start to spend on frivolous items that are
not necessary for survival. Life in university is probably going to be a time of their life
when very little money is earned. Thus, it is advisable better to prepare for some sacrifices.
Debt must be avoided whenever possible, as it can quickly become overwhelming. Keep
some saving on hand for emergencies for uncertain incidents and needs are absolutely
important for survival in the university (Rosnia, Norailis, Norasikin, & Nurazalia, 2012).
Financial planning is an important aspect of our daily life involving cash flow and liability
management. Some of the most important aspects include the maintenance and
enhancement of personal cash flows through a multiplicity of channels including debt
control and maintenance of lifestyle. It refers to the management of cash, debt, financial
planning, investment, insurance as well as retirement and estate planning (Dowling,
Corney, & Hoiles, 2009)
3
I. Curtin University Sarawak - The first offshore campus of Curtin
University, Western Australia, and the first foreign university campus in East
Malaysia. Opened in 1999 in partnership with the Sarawak government, it serves
the educational needs of local and foreign students.
II. University of Chester - Works to commence soon for development of the
university facilities. Will be Chester University first offshore campus outside
UK.
III. Cahaya Educational & Training Academy Sdn Bhd
IV. Community College Miri
V. Fajar International College - Provide education in Occupational Safety and
Health, Business Management and Accounting Courses.
VI. IBS College Miri - Has been developed as the key provider of business and
management training and education program in Miri, Sarawak. The College was
established in 1992, originally as a professional training and development center
and received the approval from the MOHE in 1998.
VII. Open University Malaysia
VIII. Institut Kemahiran Belia Negara
IX. Institut Latihan Perindustrian Miri
X. Institut Pendidikan Guru Malaysia Kampus Miri Sarawak
XI. Institut Pengurusan Maxcel
XII. Institut Teknologi Riam
XIII. Pusat Pembangunan Kemahiran Sarawak (Lutong)
XIV. I-Systems College Miri
4
Miri is considered a multi ethnic country with Malay, Indian and Chinese, and a
multicultural society with a mixture of Muslim, Hindus and Buddhists. People’s
perception is that the Chinese students have the lowest level of financial skills even though
Chinese were generally economically better than other ethnic groups, Indian students have
the highest level and the Malay students are in the average level (Academia.edu, 2015).
However, financial problems are the direct output of financial behaviour like saving
behaviour, however, it is assumed that financial behaviour by mediating with financial
problems can influence financial satisfaction.
As education loans become a major source of financing for university students in Miri,
their personal financial management skills need to be assessed to ensure effective and
efficient use of financial resources. While students have wide access to financial services,
such as education loans and credit, they lack the financial management knowledge and
experience to manage money, which may lead to financial problem.
The National Higher Education Fund Corporation loan (PTPTN) is the major source of
financing for tertiary education in Malaysia. The availability of this loan since 1997 has
enabled more students to pursue higher education support the cost of living. University
students are experiencing financial problems due to the lack of financial literacy.
University students report having high debt, serious credit card usage, and high stress, as
well as low financial satisfaction due to the lack of financial management skills.
On the other hand, parent socialization play an important role that can influence saving
behaviour among college students. Parents are the primary and direct source of financial
practices, followed by peers who are an additional source of influence in financial
socialization, and finally the mass media and advertising provide information about
consumption and the value of material goods.
5
Financial knowledge is a strong predictor of financial behaviour and a preventive factor
for financial problems. The term financial problem generally refers to mismatch between
financial resources and demands. The manner in which college students manage their
money is based on several factors such as age, personality traits, and knowledge. Thus,
self-control also may influence saving behaviour among Mirian.
With the problem statement that have just mentioned, there are several research questions
are available to question on the problems. The research questions are following:
Research Question 1: What are the awareness and attitude of young students towards
savings?
Research Question 3: How peer influence affects saving behaviour among young
students in Miri?
Research Question 4: How the student’s parent influence students’ attitude toward
savings?
Research Question 5: How to improve the personal saving among the young students?
6
1.4 Research Objectives
Research Objectives 3: To examine the relationship between peer influence and saving
behaviour among young students in Miri.
Research Objectives 5: To study the ways to improve the personal saving among the
young students.
7
1.5 Significant of the Study
This research was conducted to identify the saving behaviour of young college students
in Miri, with purpose to create financial awareness among them towards saving. On the
grounds of determination of core problems, educators and regulators are able to develop
appropriate programs and design relevant financial courses to help the young college
students in managing their personal money and avoid the debt
tracks. Additionally, as university students is the group of concern and there is lack of
researchers’ attention on the saving behaviour of university students, this study can be an
inspiration for other researchers to continuously exploring on this topic. Lastly it also
helps the parents to define what the factors that affecting their children saving behaviour,
thus they can effectively monitor their children and ensure them on the right track of
money management.
This research was conducted mainly to study the scope of Financial Management
specifically focus on student’s saving attitude. This research was conducted to study on
factors that influence saving behaviour among student in Miri tertiary educational
institutions. However, this study was concerned on 50 respondents of tertiary educational
institution students through the distribution of questionnaires designed.
Firstly, the study only confined to 80 young college students in Miri to represent all the
population of all young college students in Miri. Secondly, the study only limited to the
tertiary educational institution available in Miri. The third limitation of this study is that
this research is only focus on the related research topic which is mainly about the attitude
of young college students towards savings. Lastly, this study also limited to only five
research questions in order to ease the entire research topic.
8
1.8 Definition of terms
For clearer understanding of the terms used in this study, below are the meanings:
9
1.9 Summary
In today’s society, there are numerous goods, services, and activities available to our youth
and with the desire to have it all, they have neglected to save and plan for the future.
Therefore, saving has become a very important and it is a good practiced especially for
young college students.
This research carried out among young college students in Miri which we limited the
population to 80 young college students. This research conducted for 6 month and
questionnaires designed helped to get data and results from the students. We focused on
the attitude of young college students towards saving. This study focused on the level of
awareness and attitude of young students towards savings, the level of savings of young
college students in Miri, the difference in the level of saving between different ethnic
groups, the background of student’s parent influence students’ attitude toward savings and
lastly to investigate the ways to improve the personal saving among the young college
students.
Perhaps this research can help to create financial awareness among them towards saving.
Besides throughout this research able to develop appropriate programs and design relevant
financial courses to help students in managing their personal money. This study also can
be an inspiration for other researchers to continuously exploring on this topic. The
research also able to help the parents to define what the factors that affecting their children
saving behaviour, indirectly they can effectively monitor their children and ensure them
on the right track of money management.
10
CHAPTER 2
LITERATURE REVIEW
2.0 Introduction
2.1.1 Saving
Saving in a simple definition is ‘the excess of income over all expenditure’, where the
expenditures are also mentioned as consumption, which is life contributions and insurance
(if any), and the saving behaviour is the money keeping activity after they use it for their
own wealth (Denton, Fretz, & Spencer, 2011).
11
a saving action. On the other hand, people are likely to define saving as investing, putting
money in a bank account, speculating and paying off mortgages (Warneryd, 1999)
Saving in a simple definition is ‘the excess of income over all expenditure’, where the
expenditures are also mentioned as consumption, which is life contributions and insurance
(if any), and the saving behaviour is the money keeping activity after they use it for their
own wealth (Denton, Fretz, & Spencer, 2011).
Research about students’ Saving behaviour in Malaysia that has been done by Salikin, et
al. (2012)mentioned about the problems of doing saving in university life, such as the
uncertain about where the money spent, or even about taking money from parents or others
without permission for the spending that driven by their desires than their economic needs.
From previous research, students have some reasons of doing saving, such as to achieve
goal, do saving until the end of the semester (most are for vacation), and do saving for
paying down debts.
Financial literacy provides the necessary knowledge, skills and tools for individuals to
make informed financial decisions with confidence, to manage personal wealth with
efficiency and to increase financial competence to demand for better financial services
(Ali, 2013).
12
Incompetency in financial literacy will limit ability to make informed financial decisions.
When individuals cannot manage their finances, then it is a problem to society (Chen &
Volpe, 1998). Increasing financial literacy and capability promotes better financial
decision-making, thus, enabling better planning and management of life events such as
education, housing purchase, or retirement (Mahdzan & Tabiani, 2013).
Research studying financial knowledge among college students indicate that students are
burdened by the lack of knowledge concerning financial issues (Chen & Volpe, 2002).
However, for people lacking financial experience, such as college students, financial
knowledge has been identified as an important factor to improve financial behaviour and
for promoting personal financial well-being. Liebermann and Flint-Goor (1996) suggested
that prior knowledge of an issue is one of the most important factors influencing
information processing.
2.1.4 Gender
Study on Swedish students saving behaviour shows that female students have a more
positive attitude towards saving and are slightly more motivated to save while male have
more positive attitude towards stocks female are more risk averse than male (Tuvesson &
Yu, 2011).
Younger people should have a bigger proportion of their savings in riskier assets such as
stocks. (Malkiel, 2011). They have long saving horizons and many years of steady income
to cover any potential losses. Income is not the only determinant of students’ saving and
consumption. They save because their parents want them to save or because of a reward
or for a sense of pride (Tuvesson & Yu, 2011).
Gender has been identified by several empirical studies to have a relationship with the
level of knowledge on financial differences. Bernheim (1998) found that males perform
better on both financial and macroeconomic questions. Being male is associated with
greater financial knowledge also in Italy (Guiso & Jappelli, 2008). Goldsmith and
13
Goldsmith (1997) suggest that women score worse than men because in general they are
less interested in the topics of investment and personal finance and, consequently, use
financial services more seldom.
From a gender perspective, male and female differences in financial issues such as attitude,
knowledge and overall behaviour is due to different financial socialization during
childhood (Lim, Teo, and Loo, 2003). For instance, in most cultures, boys have grown up
with the expectation of being the family breadwinner while girls have grown up with the
expectation of being the caregiver (Wilhelm, Varcoe & Fridrich, 1993). Therefore,
diversity in gender role expectations would provide different strategies to the financial
socialization of boys and girls, and, consequently, the different levels of financial
knowledge among them (Falahati & Paim, 2011).
2.1.5 Courses
There is considerable evidence that people who studied economics or business courses are
more likely to be financially knowledgeable. This argument was supported by research of
Lusardi and Mitchell (2007b) and Chen and Volpe (2002). Ramasamy et al. (2013), has
found that management students have a low level of agreement with financial literacy as
an education process by which individuals improve their understanding of financial
products and concepts. The students do believe that financial awareness programs in
college and universities curriculum will be a good and effective initiative to improve the
financial literacy among students. As the results, education levels and type of
Specialization (majors) has a significant influence on general financial awareness as the
Accounting and Finance Specialization (majors) students showed a higher level of general
financial awareness.
Chen and Volpe (1998) analyzed personal finance literacy among 924 students in 14
universities and their conclusion was that, knowledge of personal finance among US
university students was generally poor, with the overall mean correct answer score of 53%
and none of the mean scores for general financial knowledge, saving, borrowing,
insurance or investments was above 65%.
14
2.2 The Level of Saving
The income of students may come from the educational loan, scholarship and parents. The
background students’ parent and how it influence students’ attitude toward savings,
including education background and household income.
According to the International Journal of Trade, 2012), the study showed that the higher
the levels of education background of parents, the lower the tendency for students to put
aside their money for savings. In addition, the study also showed that the lower the
household income, the higher tendency for students to put aside their money for savings.
It can also be interpreted that students from a wealthier family may not have proper future
financial planning. They believe that they can rely on their parents. In the study, the
parents’ background influences the students’ saving behaviour. The importance to save
grows especially for a student who is still financially dependent on his family for
educational purposes. The current behaviour will affect their potential for developing
positive attitudes towards cash management such as having a good personal financial
planning especially when dealing with expenses and investment to guarantee their future.
15
2.2.2 The source of income
According to the Save the Student, 2015, employment is only a source of income for
students. The students highly earn their income from parents or from part-time job.
According to Sabri & Masud (2006), the study on the sources of Income among University
Students in Malaysia, all students participated in this study received study loan ranging
from MYR5, 000 to MYR7, 000 per semester depending on the program. Majority of the
respondents indicate that they took the study loan to support their university education
and to lessen up their parents’ financial burden. Nevertheless the respondents felt that the
amount of money received from the study loan was insufficient to cover their financial
needs Majority of the students received money from family and in some cases the students
obtain additional income by working. Parents are the main source of money for the
respondents. The amount of money received was converted into a yearly amount and
computed for all sources cited. On the overall among 1184 respondents in this study
received a mean of MYR2071.12 per year. Male students received significantly higher
mean (MYR2351.68) compared to female respondents (MYR1865.39).
16
2.3 The Relationship between Peer Influence and Saving Behaviour among Young
Students
2.3.1 Peer influence
Thus, peer effects play an important role in retirement saving decisions. Peer is person
who important that can influence others or their partner after parents. So that, peer is one
of the important factor that contribute saving behaviour among students of Tertiary
Educational Institutions in Miri where peer is person whose after parents that close to
them. In addition, peer who have behaviour like saving is a good behaviour that students
may followed.
Socialization is the process by which individuals acquire the knowledge, skills, and value
dispositions that enable them to participate as more or less effective members of groups
and society. Social influence involves the exercise of social power by a person or group
to change the attitude or behaviour of others in a particular direction. Many
societies belief saving money as thrift, a virtue which is highly value and is important to
the economic growth of a nation. (Academia.edu, 2015)
17
The intrinsic value of saving money was spread through religious teaching, through
education of children and various popular attempts to enlighten people about the
importance of being frugal (within limits). In their study on the effect of parental influence
to children’s saving, also found out that socialization of the importance of saving during
childhood do influence the children economic behaviour during adulthood that parents
appear to play an important role in the consumer socialization of their offspring about
relevant consumer aspects. (Academia.edu, 2015)
(Rosnia, Norailis, Norasikin, & Nurazalia, 2012) investigated that the higher the levels of
education background of parents, the lower the tendency for students to put aside their
money for savings. Most of the respondents chose to save approximately 1% to 10% from
their income. It can be seen that the mother is the main factor who influence respondents
to save part of their income. Perhaps, the close relationship between respondents and their
mothers makes it easier for mothers to remind respondents frequently about the
advantages of saving at a young age. As compared to fathers, their responsibilities are
more outside the home environment circle.
2.5 Ways to Improve the Personal Saving among the Young College Students
18
Financial literacy is a basic concept in understanding money and its use in daily life. This
includes the way income and expenditure are managed and the ability to use the common
methods of exchanging and managing money. Financial literacy is important at several
levels. It has major implications for the welfare of individuals in the management of their
financial affairs. Financial literacy influences how people save, borrow, invest and
manage their financial affairs. It therefore affects their capacity to grow their wealth and
income, and has significant implications for people’s lifestyle choices. Financial literacy
also has a significant part to play in influencing financial institutions (Sarigul, 2014).
Setting up a budget and tracking expenses either on paper or through online budgeting
tools shows students and grads exactly where their money goes each month and gives
them the opportunity to adjust spending in certain areas. Keeping a financial journal can
establish what kind of habits have already started and help to head off bad ones early on.
(Driscoll, 2013)
“You will quickly learn where you spend the most money and what you value financially-
-are you a person who makes impulse buys or do you research your purchases?” she
says. “This type of trending becomes valuable when the student is trying to determine if
they need to keep spending in check, how well they manage their money and if there are
areas where they can improve their budgeting skills.”
Whether grads manually set aside a certain amount of money each month, schedule an
automatic withdrawal from their checking account or direct a percentage of their pay
check into an employer retirement plan, the experts say creating a savings system is
essential for successful long term money management (Driscoll, 2013).
19
2.6 Summary
Research studying financial knowledge among college students indicate that students are
burdened by the lack of knowledge concerning financial issues (Chen & Volpe, 2002).
However, from a gender perspective, male and female differences in financial issues such
as attitude, knowledge and overall behaviour is due to different financial socialization
during childhood (Lim, Teo, and Loo, 2003).
Chen and Volpe (1998) analysed personal finance literacy among 924 students in 14
universities and their conclusion was that, knowledge of personal finance among US
university students was generally poor, with the overall mean correct answer score of 53%
and none of the mean scores for general financial knowledge, saving, borrowing,
insurance or investments was above 65%.
In addition, social influence involves the exercise of social power by a person or group to
change the attitude or behaviour of others in a particular direction. Many
societies belief saving money as thrift, a virtue which is highly value and is important to
the economic growth of a nation. (Academia.edu, 2015)
(Rosnia, Norailis, Norasikin, & Nurazalia, 2012) investigated that the higher the levels of
education background of parents, the lower the tendency for students to put aside their
money for savings.
20
Nevertheless, financial literacy influences how people save, borrow, invest and manage
their financial affairs. It therefore affects their capacity to grow their wealth and income,
and has significant implications for people’s lifestyle choices. Financial literacy also has
a significant part to play in influencing financial institutions (Sarigul, 2014).
21
CHAPTER 3
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
3.0 Introduction
The third chapter which includes research methodology describes the research design and
data collection method that is being used by the researcher. This chapter includes research
design, process of data collection, research instrument, and type of analyses of this
research. The research method designed is to investigate the research problem and how
the researcher gathers data to answer the five research questions.
Researcher generally chooses one of two research methods to collect evidence for their
projects that are qualitative or quantitative methods. Quantitative method involves
collecting data through structured research instruments, such as distribute surveys to large
numbers of participants to represent an entire population. Quantitative research is rooted
in numbers and statistics, with results often represented in charts, graphs or tables (Zappia,
2015).
Qualitative research method is less driven by hard data. This method includes focus groups,
in-depth interviews, and open-ended questions to increase understanding of a
phenomenon. A smaller number of participants are requiring, with open-ended questions
allowing interviewers to understand the experiences of their participants in greater depth
(Zappia, 2015).
22
In this research, the researcher adopted quantitative method which the collection method
used questionnaire as to explore result of the research questions. It involves using a self-
designed questionnaire to collect data from respondents. Using questionnaire survey is an
effective method, because it is a simple way to collect data or opinions from a large group
of people.
For this research, the researcher adopted quantitative method by using questionnaire to get
the research data. As the study covers Miri young college students, so the researcher
designed to distribute the self-designed questionnaire and then analyze the situation.
Questionnaire constructed in simple language in order to reduce the risk of ambiguity.
There are 100 pieces of questionnaires distributed to the respondents.
The researcher has been select 80 young college students in Miri to fill up the
questionnaire forms. The questionnaires were distributed to those respondents by the
researcher personally. The questionnaires given to the respondents for a day for them to
answer. After respondents completed the questionnaires, the researcher collected the
questionnaires from the respondents. Next, the researcher key in the data by using
Window Excel and then constructing table and chart to show the overall data for further
analysis.
23
3.3 Research Instrument
The research instrument used in this data collection process is through questionnaire.
Questionnaire is a “list of a research or survey questions asked to respondents, and
designed to extract specific information” (Business Dictionary, n.d., p.1). The four basic
purposes of questionnaire are to collect the appropriate data, make data comparable and
amenable to analysis, minimize bias in formulating and asking question, and to make
questions engaging and varied (Business Dictionary, n.d.).
For this research, the questionnaires structure designed based on two types of answering
techniques which are selective based and rating-based. Selective-based questions required
respondents to tick in the appropriate box or boxes. Rating-based questions instructed
respondents to rate their opinion for a specific fact by making a five point scale ranging
from “Strongly Disagree” to “Strongly Agree” or from “Very Unimportant” to “Very
Important”.
24
For this research, the collected data are processed using Microsoft Excel for the data
analysis. Analysis used statistical data such as frequency, average and percentage. The
statistical analysis used will base on descriptive analysis.
Descriptive statistics are used to describe the basic features of the data in a study. They
provide simple summaries about the sample and the measures. Together with simple
graphics analysis, they form the basis of virtually every quantitative analysis of data.
Descriptive statistics are numbers that are used to summarize and describe data. The word
data refers to the information that has been collected from the questionnaires.
The analyses of data from the received feedback from the questionnaire quantitative
stimulation by using Microsoft Excel like in average index and relative index calculation
and tables or chart were drawn.
3.5 Summary
As conclusion, this chapter covers all the necessary research method, data collection
process and the analysis method. For this research, the researcher adopted quantitative
method and the collection was through self-designed questionnaire. A sample size 100
respondents who are Miri young college students were targeted in this research. The
questionnaires were distributed to the respondents by the researcher personally. For this
research, the questionnaires structure designed based on two types of answering
techniques which are selective-based and rating-based. The questionnaire for this study
developed in two sections only. The presentation of the data was done using Microsoft
Excel and Microsoft Word. The statistical analysis used based on descriptive analyses and
the frequency, average and percentage were computed into tables or chart. The results of
the data collected through the questionnaire are presented and interpreted in Chapter
4.
25
CHAPTER 4
DATA ANALYSIS
4.0 Introduction
This chapter will represent the result or findings and analysis on the saving behavior of
young college students in Miri. The results of the data collected through the
questionnaire are presented into table and figure as it is easier to be understood.
A total of 100 questionnaires have been distributed, and all the questionnaires were
returned. After preliminary data analysis, 20 questionnaires were invalid. As a result, 80
questionnaires were retained for data analysis. Table 4.0 shows the percentage of valid
and invalid questionnaires that returned by respondents.
Valid 80 80%
Invalid 20 20%
26
4.1 Frequency Analysis
27
Table 4.1(b): Respondent Demographic Profile
VARIABLES CLASSIFICATION FREQUENCY PERCENTAGE
1. AGE 18 and below 5 6.25%
19-20 14 17.50%
21-22 35 43.75%
23 and above 26 32.50%
7. PARENTS EDUCATION
BACKGROUND
FATHER UPSR 9 11.25%
PMR 21 26.25%
SPM 30 37.50%
STPM 0 0.00%
Diploma 12 15.00%
Bachelor Degree 4 5.00%
Postgraduate 3 3.75%
Others 1 1.25%
28
MOTHER UPSR 10 12.50%
PMR 20 25.00%
SPM 39 48.75%
STPM 0 0.00%
Diploma 6 7.50%
Bachelor Degree 2 2.50%
Postgraduate 2 2.50%
Others 1 1.25%
29
4.2.1 Colleges
2. FAJAR COLLEGE
3. CURTIN UNIVERSITY
KEMAHIRAN BELIA
4. OPEN UNIVERSITY
5. RIAM INSTITUTE OF
7. INSTUTUT LATIHAN
PERINDUSTRIAN
6. INSTITUT
TECHNOLOGY
NEGARA
Figure 4.1 shows that majority of the respondents are from IBS College (25%) followed
by the Curtin University (23.75%) and Fajar College (15%). The minority of the
respondents are from Open University (12.50%), Riam Institute of Technology (11.25%),
Institut Kemahiran Belia Negara (7.50%) and Institut Latihan Perindustrian (5%).
30
4.2.2 Age
6%
33% 17%
44%
1. Age 18 and below 1. Age 19-20 1. Age 21-22 1. Age 23 and above
Figure 4.2 shows that majority of the respondents fall into the age group of 21 to 22 years
old (44%). Followed by the age group of 23 and above (33%) and 19 to 20 years old (17%).
Meanwhile, there is only 6% of the respondents fall into the age group of age 18 and below.
31
4.2.3 Race
Figure 4.3 Percentage of respondents based on race
6%
19%
41%
34%
Figure 4.3 demonstrates that majority of the respondents are Chinese (41%) followed by
Malay (34%). Meanwhile, 19% of the respondents are Iban and 6% of the respondents are
Indian. There are no other race among the respondents.
32
4.2.4 Marital Status
70.00%
60.00%
50.00%
40.00%
30.00%
20.00%
10.00%
12.50%
0.00%
Single Married
Figure 4.4 demonstrates that almost all the respondents (87.50%) are single whereas only
12.5% of respondents are married.
33
4.2.5 Course of Study
Others 25.00%
Management 12.50%
Business 37.50%
According to Figure 4.5, the respondents who enrolled in business course (37.50%) are
more than those who enrolled in Finance & Accounting (25%), Management (12.50%)
and other course (25%).
34
4.2.6 Monthly Allowance Received from Parents
15%
44%
37%
Based on the pie chart above, most of the respondents receive allowance less that RM200
per month (44%) from their parents, followed by allowance received between RM 201-
RM500 (37%) and RM 501-RM800 (15%). Result shows that only small portion of
respondents received substantial allowance from their parents amounting between RM801
– RM1000 (1%) whereby only 3% of them fall into range more than RM1000.
35
4.2.7 Engagement in Part-time Job
80.00%
70.00%
60.00%
50.00%
40.00%
30.00%
20.00%
10.00% 6.25%
0.00%
Yes No
Figure 4.7shows that 93.75% of the respondents engage in part-time whereas 6.25%
reported that they did not engage in part-time.
36
4.2.8 Parents Educational Background
Figure 4.8: Percentage of Respondents Based on Parents Education Background
40.00% 37.50%
20.00% 15.00%
11.25% 12.50%
10.00% 7.50%
5.00%3.75%
1.25% 2.50%2.50%1.25%
0.00% 0.00%
0.00% Others
Others
Postgraduate
PMR
PMR
Postgraduate
UPSR
STPM
UPSR
STPM
SPM
SPM
Diploma
Bachelor Degree
Diploma
Bachelor Degree
FATHER MOTHER
Figure 4.8 reveals that most of the respondents came from lower educated family. Nearly
48.75% of respondents’ mother completed their study after SPM as compared to
respondents’ father which is 37.50%. On the contrary more respondents’ father pursue for
higher education level (Diploma, Bachelor Degree, Postgraduate and others) totaling 25%
while only 13.75% of respondents’ mother pursuing their study.
37
4.2.9 Household income per month
RM3001-RM5000 53.75%
Figure 4.9 indicates that 53.75% of the respondents come from medium class family
which is gaining household income range RM3001-RM5000 per month. It is followed by
household income more than RM5000 (33.75%) and 12.50% gaining household income
less than RM3000.
38
4.2.10 Saving Amount per Month
14%
31%
33%
From Figure 4.10, there are 33% of the respondents save between RM101-RM200
followed by RM201-RM300 (31%). There are only 14% of the respondents choose to save
less than RM100. On the contrary, 12%of the respondents did not save money at all and
only 10% o the respondents save more than RM300.
39
4.3 The Factors that Contribute to Saving
Table 4.3(a): Factors contribute to saving behavior among students of Tertiary Educational Institution
FACTORS MEAN %
Financial Literacy
1. I have better understanding of how to invest my money 2.61 52.25%
2. I have better understanding of financial instruments (eg: bonds, stock, T-bill, future 2.58 51.50%
contract, option and etc.)
3. I have the ability to prepare my own monthly budget 3.21 64.25%
4. I have the ability to maintain financial records for my income and expenditure 3.5 69.50%
5. I have no difficulty in managing my money 2.89 57.75%
Parental Socialization
1. My parents are good example for me when it comes to money management 3.6 71.50%
2. I always talk about money management with my parents 3.4 68.25%
3. I save money because I don’t think my parents should pay for things I don’t really need 3.6 72.00%
4. Saving is something that I do regularly because my parents wanted me to save when I 3.95 79.00%
was little
5. I appreciate it when my parents give me advice about what to do with my money 3.89 77.75%
Peer Influence
1. As far as I know, some of my friends regularly do save with a saving account 3.39 67.75%
2. I always discuss about money management issue(saving) with my friends 4.01 80.25%
3. I always compare the amount of saving and spending with my friends 2.58 51.50%
4. I always spend my leisure time with my friends 3.56 71.25%
5. I always involve in money spending activities with friends 3.48 69.50%
Self-Control
1. I don’t save, because I think it’s too hard 2.48 49.50%
2. I enjoy spending money on things aren’t practical 2.8 56.00%
3. When I get money, I always spend it immediately ( within 1-2 days) 1.76 35.25%
4. I always failed to control myself from spending money 3.3 66.00%
5. I am more concerned with what happens to me in short run than in the long run 3.09 61.75%
Saving Behavior
1. I put my money aside on a regular basis for the future 2.91 58.25%
2. In order to save, I often compare prices before I make a decision 3.39 67.75%
3. In order to save, I often consider whether the real necessity before I make a purchase 3.45 69.00%
4. I save to achieve certain goal 3.68 73.50%
5. I save until my end of semester 2.29 45.75%
40
Table 4.3(b) Summary of factors that contribute saving behaviour
among students of tertiary educational institution in Miri
Factors Percentage
4. Self-Control 53.7%
From table 4.3(b) Parental socialization (73.7%) plays the most important role in
contributing the saving behavior among the young college students followed by the peer
influence (68.05%). The saving behavior of the young college students contribute 62.85%
in contributing the saving. The financial literacy and self-control factors contribute the
least in saving which is 59.05% and 53.7% respectively.
4.4 Summary
As a conclusion, the majority of the respondents are from IBS College. The young college
student’s majority are fall into the age group of 21 to 22 years old. Besides, majority of
the respondents are Chinese and almost all the respondents are single. Furthermore, most
of the respondents are enrolled in business course. In the summary, most of the
respondents receive allowance less that RM200 per month from their parents and the
analysis shows that almost all of the respondents engage in part-time job.
The result and analysis also show that most of the respondents came from lower educated
family. Nearly 48.75% of respondents’ mother completed their study after SPM as
compared to respondents’ father which is 37.50%.
41
There are about 53.75% of the respondents come from medium class family which is
gaining household income range RM3001-RM5000 per month. The respondents save the
most amount between RM101-RM200
Lastly, Parental socialization plays the most important role in contributing the saving
behavior among the young college students followed by the peer influence. The financial
literacy and self-control factors contribute the least in saving behavior.
42
CHAPTER 5
5.0 Introduction
This chapter discussed the overall result with analysis the major findings, and conclusion
from the research. The recommendations will be constructed to value all the findings in
order to be meaningful for the future research.
Finding 1:
From the result, the young college students have average level of financial literacy. More
than half of the students have the ability to maintain their financial records for their income
and expenditure.
Finding 2:
However, the young college students have low self-control where they failed to control
themselves from spending money. Therefore, the result shows most of the students they
only save amount between RM101-RM200.
43
Finding 3:
Peer influence has the positive influence towards saving behavior among the tertiary
educational institution students in Miri with second highest mean 3.4025. The students
have average level of saving attitude. The students save due to they want to achieve certain
goal.
Finding 4:
Parental socialization has a positive influence and significant relationship with saving
behavior. It indicates that the parent socialization has strongest influence towards saving
behaviour among the tertiary educational institution students in Miri. The young college
students think that saving is something they do regularly because their parents wanted
them to save when they were little.
Finding 5:
Based on the finding, the college young students should have implement a high self-
control over their spending behavior. They always failed to do saving in a larger amount.
The students failed to put aside money for saving on a regular basis for the future.
5.2 Recommendations
This study has suggested several recommendations:
5.2.1 Institution should stress on financial literacy towards students
Research studying financial knowledge among college students indicate that students are
burdened by the lack of knowledge concerning financial issues (Chen & Volpe, 2002;
Ibrahim, Harun, & Isa, 2009; Lusardi, Mitchell, &Curto, 2010; Mandell, 2009). However,
for people lacking financial experience, such as college students, financial knowledge has
been identified as an important factor to improve financial behaviour and for promoting
personal financial well-being. So that, institutions like university should stress on subject
that related to financial literacy to give an awareness about the saving behaviour towards
students.
44
5.2.2 Increase the level of saving
In order to increase the level of saving, college students are encourage to create a budget
by using an online service or smartphone app that makes money management easy and
convenient. As a college students, debt should be minimized to the minimum level.
Students should spend on the right things, fund extras with job and set a financial limits.
45
5.4 Conclusion
From the results of this study parents’ socialization influences the students’ saving
behaviour. Parents will affect their potential for developing positive attitudes towards cash
management such as having a good personal financial planning especially when dealing
with expenses and investment to guarantee their future. As Malaysia is on its way to
become a high income economy in year 2020, education in financial planning is important
for graduates. It should be recognized as one of life’s skills since it encourages self-
discipline and ensures good personal financial management which is a crucial training for
graduates today who are leaders of tomorrow. The researchers planned to extend his
research to other public and private higher education institutions in order to generalize the
findings on this matter.
46
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Economic Paper.
Beal, D. & Delpatchitra, S.B. (2003). Financial Literacy among Australian University
Students.
Mitchell, & S. Schieber (Eds.). Living with defined contribution pensions, (pp.38-68).
B. G. Malkiel, A random walk down Wall Street: The time-tested strategy for successful
Browning, M., & Lusardi, A. (1996). Household saving: Micro theories and micro facts.
47
Business Research, 3(1), 105-116. Retrieved on January 9, from
http://www.ijtef.org/papers/249-X00039.pdf
Business Dictionary. (2015). Financial Planning. Retrieved January 23, 2015 from
http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/financialplanning.html#ixzz3TC6
CAErC
Business Dictionary. (2015) Financial Obligations. Retrieved January 23, 2015 from
http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/financialobligation.html#ixzz3TC
6VWURn
Business Dictionary. (2015) Financial Management. Retrieved January 23, 2015 from
http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/financialmanagement.html#ixzz3T
C6s5xmD
Business Dictionary. (2015) Savingst. Retrieved January 23, 2015 from
http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/savings.html
Chen, H., & Volpe, R. P. (1998). An Analysis of Personal Financial Literacy Among
Chen, H., & Volpe, R. P. (2002). Gender differences in personal financial literacy among
Denton, F., Fretz, D., & Spencer, B. (2011). Independence and Economic Security in Old
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/student
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/parent
48
Dowling, N. A., Corney, T., & Hoiles, L. (2009). Financial Management Practices and
http://www.ijtef.org/papers/249-X00039.pdf
Driscoll, E. (2013) How College Grads Can Improve Money Skills. Retrieved 15 May
2015, from
http://www.foxbusiness.com/features/2013/06/10/how-college-grads-can-
improve money-management-skills.html.
Falahati, L., & Paim, L. (2011). Gender differences in financial well-being among college
http://www.insipub.com/ajbas/2011/September-2011/1765-1776.pdf
www.ipfp.k-state.edu/documents/jpf/05/02/investedu.pdf
Guiso, L., & Jappelli, T. (2003). Financial literacy and portfolio diversification. CSEF
www.csef.it/WP/wp212.pdf
International Journal of Trade. (2012). Economics and Finance, Vol. 3, No. 6, p.1.
Retrieved on 9 January, 2015 from
http://www.ijtef.org/papers/249-X00039.pdf
49
Investopedia. (2015) Financial Literacy. Retrieved May 15 from
http://www.investopedia.com/terms/f/financial-literacy.asp
Leach, L. J., Hayhoe, C. R., & Turner, P. R. (1999). Factors affecting perceived economic
well
Lim, V. K. G., Teo, T. S. H., & Loo, G. (2003). Sex, financial hardship and locus of
Lusardi, A., Mitchell, O.S., & Curto, V. (2010). Financial literacy among the young.
Journal of Consumer Affairs, 44(2), 358–380. Retrieved January 11, 2011 from
www.mrrc.isr.umich.edu
50
Mahdzan, N. S., & Tabiani, S. (2013). The impact of financial literacy on individual
Remund, D. L. (2010). Financial Literacy Explicated: The Case for a Clearer Definition
Rosnia, M., Norailis, A. W., Norasikin, S., & Nurazalia, Z. (2012). The Importance of
S. Hasmet. (2014). The Journal of Accounting and Finance. Retrieved May 15, from
http://www.journal.mufad.org/attachments/article/767/11.pdf
Sabri, M.F., & Masud, J. (2006). Sources of Income among University Students in
51
http://www.consumerinterests.org/assets/docs/CIA/CIA2006/sabrimasud_source
sofincomeamonguniversitystudentsinmalaysia.pdf
Wilhelm, M. S., Varcoe, K., & Fridrich, A. H. (1993). Financial Satisfaction and
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miri#Education
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Student
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miri
Workers. Journal of Financial Counseling and Planning Volume, 20(2), 5-13. Retrieved
on January 9, from
http://www.ijtef.org/papers/249-X00039.pdf
52
APPENDICES
53
Questionnaire
Survey Questionnaire
Dear valued respondent, I am a final year undergraduate students
of Bachelor of Business Administration (Hons) Finance, from
Twintech University conducting a research on saving attitude
among students in Tertiary Educational Institutions in Miri. Your
response is very important for this study and will keep strictly
confidential.
Instructions:
________________________________________________________________
54
Section A: Demographic Profile
Please indicate (/) in the appropriate information about yourself. Each question should only have ONE
answer. All responses are strictly confidential.
2. Gender
Male
Female
3. Age
18 and below
19 – 20
21-22
23 and above
4. Race
Chinese
Malay
Iban
Indian
Others: __________________
5. Marital Status
Single
Married
55
6. Course of Study
Business
Management
Others: ________________________
7. How much allowance do you get from your parents per month?
RM0 – RM200
RM201 – RM500
RM501 – RM 800
RM801 - RM1000
No
PMR
SPM
STPM
Diploma
Bachelor Degree
Postgraduate
Others
56
b) Mother
UPSR
PMR
SPM
STPM
Diploma
Bachelor Degree
Postgraduate
Others
RM3001 – RM5000
RM101-RM200
RM201-RM300
57
Section B: Factors That Contribute Saving Behavior among
Students of Tertiary Educational Instituitions in Miri.
Based on your opinion, please circle the most appropriate response with the scale given
below.
1) SD = Strongly Disagree
2) D = Disagree
3) N = Neutral
4) A = Agree
5) SA = Strongly Agree
Factors SD D N A SA
Financial literacy
1 2 3 4 5
58
Factors SD D N A SA
Parental Socialization
59
Factors SD D N A SA
Peer Influence
1 2 3 4 5
60
Factors SD D N A SA
Self-Control
1 2 3 4 5
61
Factors SD D N A SA
Saving Behavior
1 2 3 4 5
1 2 3 4 5
62