Financial Capability and Asset Building With Diverse Populations ― Improving Financial Well-being in Families and Communities

Global economic recovery in the aftermath of the Great Recession has not been experienced equally: while the share of wealth owned by the richest 3% has grown, the share owned by the poorest 90% continues to decline (Oxfam, 2016). This wealth divide disproportionately affects racial and ethnic minority communities.

This book underscores the importance of financial capability and asset building (FCAB) practice, policy and research during a period when vulnerable populations face increasingly difficult economic and financial realities. At the same time, retrenchment and privatization of government-sponsored social services have eroded the safety net available for families experiencing poverty or near-poverty conditions. The proliferation of products and services available from both formal and informal financial institutions highlights the need to promote FCAB to avoid and/or recover from financial difficulties, crises and poverty. The contributors to this volume disseminate findings from interventions designed to increase financial knowledge, financial management and financial access across several vulnerable populations, including immigrant communities. Further, they demonstrate the need for culturally sensitive FCAB service delivery, considering opportunities and barriers posed by past and current life situations, experiences and environments experienced by different populations. The book is aimed at policymakers, researchers and practitioners who assist financially vulnerable people get ahead. This book was originally published as a special issue of the Journal of Community Practice.

Julie Birkenmaier is a Professor of Social Work at Saint Louis University, USA. Her current research focuses on financial capability and asset building, including financial access and financial inclusion.

Margaret Sherraden is Research Professor at Washington University in St. Louis and Emeritus Professor of Social Work at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, USA. Her current research focuses on adult and youth savings, financial capability, and community economic development.

Jodi Jacobson Frey is Associate Professor of Social Work at the University of Maryland, USA. Her research focuses on workplace behavioral health, emphasizing mental health, substance use and suicide prevention.

Christine Callahan is Research Assistant Professor with the Financial Social Work Initiative at the University of Maryland, USA. Her research focuses on interventions that social workers can use to promote greater financial capability, especially in vulnerable, under-served populations.

Anna Maria Santiago is Professor of Social Work at Michigan State University, USA. Her research focuses on financial capability and asset building in low-income families; neighborhood effects on the health and well-being of low-income children; low-income housing and homeownership; foreclosures; and predatory lending in the US and international contexts.