Consumer credit intentions and self-reported behavior among rural workers and the role of perceived credit mechanisms in Sichuan, China

Information from the abstract

Consumer credit may help rural households manage irregular income and finance consumption or productive expenditure, but the factors associated with formal credit use among rural workers remain insufficiently understood. This cross-sectional study examines the relationships among standard Theory of Planned Behavior constructs, perceptions of the rural credit environment, credit-use intentions and self-reported credit behavior in Sichuan Province, China. The perceived rural consumer credit mechanism construct represents respondents’ general appraisal of the convenience, accessibility, product suitability and fairness of local credit services. Responses from 385 economically active rural residents were analyzed using covariance-based structural equation modeling. Attitude, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control and the perceived credit mechanism were positively associated with behavioral intention; intention and perceived behavioral control were positively associated with self-reported behavior. The proposed indirect paths through the credit mechanism were statistically significant. A six-factor measurement model fitted substantially better than models that combined perceived behavioral control with the credit mechanism or loaded all items on one factor. However, an alternative structural ordering in which the perceived credit mechanism preceded the three psychological antecedents showed similar fit. The cross-sectional results therefore support associations and statistical indirect effects, not temporal or causal mediation. The study extends research on rural consumer finance by distinguishing personal control from perceptions of the external credit environment. Its relevance to human resource management is prospective: workforce performance, absenteeism, turnover and financial well-being were not measured and should be examined directly in future studies.

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Related topics: Microfinance and Financial Inclusion · Financial Literacy, Pension, Retirement Analysis · Financial Literacy and Behavior