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This study aims to examine the role of involvement in saving money (ISM) to better understand children’s saving behavior and allow a deeper understanding of financial literacy processes among children. The emphasis on ISM is based on previous studies indicating the central role of involvement variables in information processing among young people.

The study is based on one-on-one interviews among 103 first-grade children. The interviews explored the relationship between the child’s ISM and substantial finance-related outcomes (attitudes toward saving money, intention to save money and saving behavior) and factors that might explain the child’s ISM (access to money, perceived importance of parental and peer attitudes toward saving money and actual parental and peer attitudes toward saving money).

Children with a high level of ISM expressed more positive attitudes toward saving, as well as more positive behavior with regard to saving. With respect to the factors that might explain the child’s level of ISM, two out of the three variables, namely, the perceived importance of parental and peer attitudes toward saving money and the child’s access to money, played a significant role in determining the child’s level of ISM.

This initial study demonstrates the importance of the involvement variable in the context of financial literacy and the need to investigate the child’s perceptions of, and motivation for, saving, with a focus on the child’s viewpoint.

In light of the core role of product involvement as a variable in consumer behavior, the current study seeks to examine which variables influence product involvement among young people. This paper aims to explore five variables: age, subjective product knowledge, influence of parents, influence of peers, and product category.

The research was founded on a quantitative field study, whose sample was comprised of 252 young people, ages 4‐15.

The findings among the entire sample imply that young people's product involvement is explained by all of the variables that were examined. Interesting findings came to light for each one of the age groups: Young children's product‐involvement level was influenced by parents and peers. The product‐involvement level for children was influenced by peers and product category. Adolescents' product‐involvement relies on subjective product knowledge and product category.

These findings expand the existing knowledge about young consumers' behavior patterns and show that the existing models provide a partial picture. In addition, the product‐involvement variable must be seen as a basis for market segmentation of the younger populations. The recommendation is to carefully create segments that examine the different product‐involvement levels among each age group.