FinTech & Wellbeing

thursday 20 July 2023

3:05 - 4:00 pm uk time

Panel description 

Our panel discussed how financial health is inherently linked to mental health. We covered topics about financial vulnerability, the role of education in promoting wellbeing and which psychological factors are important to consider when designing digital interventions. We also presented results from our recent research study looking at how financially-focused psychoeducation may help to relieve financial anxiety and promote self-confidence in money management. Ultimately, we tried to answer the age-old question of whether money really does buy you happiness.

Panellists 

Sarah Murphy

Sarah is the Senior Health, Social Care and Welfare Systems Strategy Lead at the Money & Pensions Service (MaPS). Her focus is on embedding financial wellbeing alongside physical and mental wellbeing. She is passionate about helping people, particularly when it comes to the joint issues of mental health and money problems. Before joining MaPS she worked for 12 years in the mental health sector, setting up the first UK-wide Mental Health & Money Advice Service and also supporting numerous employers to improve their support for employees in relation to their mental health and wellbeing.

Dr. Vicky Root

Vicky has a PhD in Clinical Neurosciences from the University of Oxford, a background in psychology (BSc, University of Manchester) and cognitive neuroscience (MSc, UCL) and has spent nearly a decade thinking and making inferences based on human behaviour. Vicky worked with people who developed a chronic pain condition, and used a range of techniques (neuroimaging, behavioural studies and computational modelling) to generate potential hypotheses as to why certain people may develop chronic pain after injury compared to those that do not. With a strong background in data analysis, and experience with using theory to inform her statistical approach, she’s Good With’s Behavioural Data Science Lead and translates her academic skills into industry, working towards creating positive change in others’ lives by promoting financial education and future financial security.

Prof Tina Harrison 

Tina Harrison is Professor of Financial Services Marketing and Consumption at the University of Edinburgh Business School. Her research focuses on consumer financial wellbeing, financial education and the role of technology in those areas.
She has led several projects for the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS), including a deep dive analysis of Young Adult Financial Capability and an evidence review of children and young people’s financial capability, and with Young Enterprise/MaPS led the evaluation of several school-based financial education projects throughout the UK. She also has an interest in later-life financial wellbeing working with Aegon UK to develop a tool to embed future-self thinking into retirement saving.

Moderator

Dr. Ellie Kallis

Co-founder & Chief Scientific Officer of Good With, Ellie, is an accomplished former-academic with scientific publications in high impact journals and a long list of international conference contributions. Her expertise includes understanding and measuring complex human behaviours, and applying robust statistical techniques to their interpretation. In 2020, Ellie left academic science to pursue her love for applied behavioural science, working as a data scientist for a leading UK provider of financial services. At Good With, Ellie oversees planning, design and implementation of all things data. She ensures we design a product that aligns with UK GDPR regulations and guidance for best practices in responsible AI.