An Exploration of Money and Happiness

Financial literacy is an important aspect of human life, and understating and gaining knowledge about how to budget, invest, and successfully save is essential in order to experience a fulfilling life without the burden of debt. This thesis seeks to raise awareness of financial literacy and to understand the way it is formed and conveyed. It first describes the different forms and amounts of debt Americans take on: consumer debt, credit card debt, and student loan debt. It next examines four currently popular financial curriculums: Dave Ramsey’s The Total Money Makeover, Suze Orman’s The Nine Steps to Financial Freedom, Robert T. Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad, Poor Dad, and Vicki Robin and Joe Dominguez’s Your Money or Your Life. The thesis then discusses the psychological aspects of financial literacy, particularly happiness studies. It then examines financial literacy from the micro perspective of a Reddit forum content analysis and concludes by turning to American philosopher Henry David Thoreau’s ideas on how to live in a financially beneficial way.