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IKD-Funded Research Features on BBC

13 August 2014

Rajiv Prabhakar image

Dr Rajiv Prabhakar, lecturer in Personal Finance, recently appeared on BBC Radio 4's Analysis programme, which examines the ideas and forces currently shaping public policy in Britain and abroad. Dr Prabhakar was interviewed about his IKD-funded research on focus groups and personal finance for Thrifty Debtors, an edition investigating why, despite people's professed desires to be thriftier, most remain stuck with high levels of personal and household debt.

In particular, his research looked at the impact of the financial crisis on people's knowledge, skills and confidence to make financial decisions. Although the focus groups found that people were generally supportive of government efforts to boost financial decision-making, they also revealed that people had complex attitudes to debt - for example in not viewing mortgages as a type of debt.

Dr Prabhakar told us, 'Appearing on the programme was great as it helped reach out to a wider public audience. Public debates offer tremendous insights for research, and I'm grateful to IKD for its support which made this opportunity possible.'

Earlier in the year, he also appeared on the panel of Radio 4's Money Matters, chaired by Mariella Frostrup. After taking a look at how the subjects of money and finance are taught at home and in school, and in light of the fact that surveys show that children understand - and worry - more about money than parents think, the panel discussed how best to teach children about the value of money and how much parents should tell them about their finances.

IKD Director Professor Maureen Mackintosh commented: 'IKD is always pleased to be able to fund pilot and seedcorn research projects. It's immensely satisfying because, as Rajiv's contributions to the programmes show, not only do these seed larger projects, they also produce fascinating results in their own right.'

Listen to Analysis.

Listen to Money Matters.

 

 

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