From Access to Outcome: Digital Financial Usage and Financial Wellness Among Unbanked and Underbanked U.S. Households

This doctoral study shifts the focus of financial inclusion research from access to outcomes, asking how digital financial usage is associated with financial wellness among unbanked and underbanked U.S. households and how financial literacy and institutional trust shape this relationship. Integrating Financial Capability Theory and the Technology Acceptance Model, it tests a moderated mediation model using nationally representative microdata from the 2021 and 2023 FDIC National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households, with financial literacy as mediator and institutional trust, income and education as moderators. The findings are intended to inform fintech product design, financial institutions, CDFIs and policymakers seeking outcome-based measures of financial inclusion.