Designing for Users’ Autonomy in Personal Finance Management

Personal finance management (PFM) is a daily activity that influences nearly every aspect of life, from meeting basic needs to handling unexpected events. These activities are inherently linked to money, yet managing finances can often feel overwhelming. The complex financial landscape can be filled with uncertainty, emotional stress, and a general lack of accessible financial knowledge. Traditional financial tools typically focus on budgets, transactions, and accounting practices, which are designed to help individuals understand their spending and saving patterns. Unfortunately, the human side of money often overlooks how people feel, think, and behave when making financial decisions. Many individuals experience overwhelming feelings when faced with these decisions. This project draws on insights from psychology, economics, the financial industry, and community, family, and individual perspectives to examine personal finance management and the factors that influence financial behaviour at the individual level. The design context is narrowed to focus on users' autonomy in intentional financial decision-making, which is essential for navigating the complex financial landscape. It argues that current PFM requires addressing deeper psychological needs, particularly in relation to autonomy, in making financial decisions and building financial resilience and stability. This inquiry investigates gaps in human-centred design (HCD) and human-computer interaction (HCI) approaches. Focusing on user autonomy provides a more comprehensive framework for addressing both external and internal needs, genuinely supporting users in making confident, informed financial decisions. User autonomy is constructed by applying Self-Determination Theory (SDT) to understand users' needs to make independent decisions in life and finance. To apply design-embedded autonomy principles, a distinctive mental model is formed between users and the product, enabling users to recognise better their interactions with a PFM product's complex behaviour. The findings suggest that autonomy can be supported in more direct and accessible ways, particularly through thoughtful design execution and low-tech solutions that simplify technology and development costs, making digital financial tools more inclusive and effective for a broader population.