Consumers' Financial Decisions and the Psychology of Values.

Financial service professionals and personal finance educators can help more consumers plan better for their retirement and later life by learning the trade secrets of advertisers. This article describes how many people make financial decisions and what sparks their desire to become more financially savvy, a necessary precondition for them to tackle spending issues and then to plan, save and invest for future financial security. Consumer-financial decisions involve psychological, physical, and social values that are rooted in feelings and emotions. Consumer behaviors can appear as irrational and even irresponsible, except to marketers. But what if finance professionals and educators could tap into the same values channels that advertisers have been stimulating and mining for years? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]