The Role of Financial Technology in Personal Financial Management and Unemployment Behavior in Generation Z

Abstract

This research examines the influence of Financial Technology (FinTech) on personal financial management and its association with unemployment behavior among Generation Z. Utilizing a quantitative, explanatory research design, the study analyzes data through Structural Equation Modeling based on Partial Least Squares (SEM-PLS) with Generation Z respondents in Pekanbaru City. The results indicate that FinTech has a positive and significant impact on personal financial management and is significantly related to unemployment behavior. Additionally, unemployment behavior significantly affects personal financial management and partially mediates the relationship between FinTech and financial management outcomes. Theoretically, this research contributes to the literature by integrating financial technology perspectives with the dynamics of the youth workforce. Policy implications underscore the importance of enhancing digital financial literacy and formulating employment policies tailored to Generation Z. The study's originality lies in identifying unemployment behavior as a contextual mediator of FinTech's impact on personal financial management within a comprehensive empirical framework. Overall, the findings confirm that FinTech plays a strategic role in shaping Generation Z's financial behavior in the context of job-market uncertainty