Brenda Cude

Education

Research

My current research focuses on consumers and information. One project looks at college students' financial literacy. Others look at consumers' insurance decisions.

I also am interested in research related to online consumer behaviors, consumer information, and consumer policy

Awards

Editorial Appointments

Service

Outreach

Funded consumer representative to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, Direct Selling Education Foundation Academic Advisory Board

Advisory Committee

Graduate Student Committees Dr. Cude Has Chaired or Co-Chaired

Student Name, Degree, Date, Position, Thesis/Dissertation Title

Michael Ryan, Ph.D. 2021 (Department Head, Economics and Finance, University of North Georgia): Preferences for defined benefit versus defined contribution retirement plans: The impact of financial literacy, risk tolerance, and time orientation.

Caroline Kopot, Ph.D., 2020 (Assistant Professor, University of Missouri): Customers’ perspectives of omnichannel retailing in fashion department stores

Lini Zhang, Ph.D., 2016: Factors affecting Chinese consumers' purchase intentions for luxury clothing

Donna Danns, Ph.D., 2014 (currently Assistant Professor, Economics, University of North Georgia): Financial education in state colleges and universities in the US: A study of program offerings and students' needs

Robin Greene, Ph.D., 2014 (currently Assistant Professor, Whitworth College): How financial literacy influences long- and short-term financial behaviors in different age cohorts

Christopher Wyczalkowski (co-chair), M.S., 2012 (currently PhD student, Georgia State University): A model of financial satisfaction; co-chair with Goetz

M.J. Kabaci, Ph.D. 2012 (currently Lecturer, Montana State University and University of Georgia): Coming to consensus: A Delphi study to identify the personal finance core concepts and competencies for undergraduate college students, undergraduate student education loan recipients and first-generation undergraduate students

Irina Kunovskaya, Ph.D. 2010 (currently Director of Research, Financial Literacy Group): Financial literacy, financial behavior and the need for financial education in a country transitioning to a market economy – The case of Russia

Anne Duke, Ph.D. 2012 (Received American Council on Consumer Interests' Dissertation Award) (currently Department Head of Accounting and Law, University of North Georgia): Motivating health savings account funding

Bill Fleming, Ph.D., 2010 (Associate Professor, St. Petersburg College): Consumer features, wants, and best practices of state insurance department websites

Yi Cai, Ph.D., 2005 (Associate Professor of Consumer Affairs, University of California Northridge): The effect of reference prices on consumer willingness-to-pay: An investigation of the name-your-own-price strategy

Kelly Manley (co-chair), Ph.D., 2005 (currently Associate Dean of Academic Administration, University of North Georgia): Consumer choice and midwifery: A qualitative analysis

Xin Dai, MS, 2003: How Internet users differ in on-line activities; The influence of their characteristics on what they do on-line

Biography

Until her retirement at the end of 2020, Brenda J. Cude was a Georgia Athletic Association Professor II of Family and Consumer Sciences in the Department of Financial Planning, Housing and Consumer Economics and the department’s Undergraduate Coordinator since 2006. She earned a Ph.D. in Consumer Economics at Purdue University. She also is the director of the University of Georgia Center for Economic Education.

Dr. Cude taught undergraduate and graduate courses, and continues to supervise undergraduate and graduate student researchers, and have an active research program. She  taught 12 different courses at UGA, 5 of which were undergraduate, including a First-Year Odyssey course she taught regularly. She created 6 of these courses and substantially revised the balance. The mean scores on her teaching evaluations across all courses ranged from 4.3 to 4.8 on a 5-point scale. She chaired 18 graduate student committees (13 Ph.D) and served on 23 other graduate student committees at UGA. She supervised 16 undergraduate researchers at UGA.

Her previous administrative experience includes serving as the head of her department for six years under Dean Sharon Nickols, from 1998 until 2004 and head of UGA's Department of Human Development and Family Sciences in January through July 2019. In addition, she was chair of the Consumer and Family Economics Extension Program Development Group at the University of Illinois from 1992 until 1998. The team included two other extension specialists and about 15 regional extension educators located throughout the state. She has served on the College’s Curriculum Committee since 1998, except for 2004-2005.

Dr. Cude’s primary research interests are in consumer decision-making, with an emphasis in personal financial literacy, especially among college students. Her publications include articles in the Journal of Consumer Affairs, Journal of Insurance Regulation, Journal of Financial Counseling and Planning, International Journal of Consumer Studies, Journal of International Consumer Marketing, Journal of Extension, Journal of Financial Services Marketing, Journal of Consumer Education, and Family and Consumer Sciences Research Journal. She also has presented 100 papers at professional conferences, primarily at the American Council on Consumer Interests, Marketing and Public Policy, and Financial Counseling and Planning Education conferences. A majority of her recent publications are co-authored with Ph.D. students or graduates, junior faculty, and/or undergraduate researchers.

Dr. Cude is a member of the editorial board of the Journal of Consumer Affairs, the leading scholarly research journal in the consumer field which is published tri-annually by the American Council on Consumer Interests (ACCI), and a past Associate Editor.

Dr. Cude has been engaged in outreach throughout her career. From 1986 through 1998, she was a state extension specialist in Consumer Economics at the University of Illinois. In that role she developed, prepared, and presented over 150 programs to various consumer, professional, and industry audiences and received numerous awards for her work. In Georgia, she was the Statewide Coordinator of the Georgia Peer Financial Counseling (PFC) Program from 2004 to 2010. Dr. Cude’s role was to keep the content current, add resources to facilitate teaching, develop materials to train the student counselors, and program administration, including helping college campuses set up and grow programs, collecting evaluation data and preparing reports.  Dr. Cude received numerous grants to fund the program and after the funding has ended, she continued to update the content and receive evaluation data.

Dr. Cude has served in a variety of capacities representing consumers. A specific area of expertise is consumer communication through websites, disclosures, and information/education targeted to consumers. She has served as a funded consumer representative to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners since 1994 and on the Board of Directors for the Consumer Participation Program since 1996. In this role, she has presented testimony from the consumer perspective on a variety of insurance topics. She frequently edits NAIC publications that are designed to be consumer-facing to use plain language. In 2014, she was named a member of the Federal Advisory Committee on Insurance.

She was a member of the Direct Selling Education Foundation Board from 2011 to 2017 and continues as a member of the Foundation’s Academic Advisory Committee. She has hosted three DSEF Campus Programs at the University of Georgia.

Dr. Cude is a FACS 100 Centennial Honoree. She was the outstanding teacher in UGA College of Family and Consumer Sciences Teacher of the Year in 2007. She has received numerous other teaching recognitions, including departmental Teacher of the Year in 2006 and 2007; 2008 University of Georgia Senior Teaching Fellow; induction into the University of Georgia (UGA) Teaching Academy in 2008, the 2017 Direct Selling Education Foundation Educator of the Year, the University of Georgia and College of Family and Consumer Sciences undergraduate research mentoring awards; and recognition from the American Council on Consumer Interests for her mentorship of graduate students and junior faculty. An article co-authored with a Ph.D. graduate earned the best article award from the Journal of Financial Planning and Education in 2016 and one of her Ph.D. student’s (Anne Duke) dissertation earned the American Council on Consumer Interests Outstanding Dissertation award in 2013. She has received outstanding alumni awards from both the University of Tennessee at Martin and Purdue University and is an American Council on Consumer Interests Distinguished Fellow.

Books

Nicolini, G., & Cude, B. J. (Editors). (2022). The Routledge handbook of financial literacy. Routledge.

Chapters in Books

Choi, S. L., & Cude, B. J. (2022). Financial literacy among older adults. In G. Nicolini and B. J. Cude, The Routledge Handbook of Financial Literacy (pp. 48-60). Routledge.

Cude, B. J. (2022). Defining financial literacy. In G. Nicolini and B. J. Cude, The Routledge Handbook of Financial Literacy (pp. 5-17). Routledge.

Cude, B. J. (2022). Financial literacy and financial education in the United States. In G. Nicolini and B. J. Cude, The Routledge Handbook of Financial Literacy (pp. 295-309). Routledge.

Cai, Y., & Cude, B. (2016). Online shopping. In Jing Jian Xiao (Ed.), Advances in Consumer Finance Research, 2nd ed. . New York: Springer-Science. (Update of chapter published in 2008 first edition).

Cude, B. J., Danns, D., & Kabaci, M. J. (2016). Financial knowledge and financial education of college students. In Xiao, J. J. (Ed.), Handbook of consumer finance research, 2nd ed., (pp. 141-154). New York: Springer-Science.

Brobeck, S., & Cude, B.J. (2015). Insurance advocacy. Watchdogs and whistleblowers: A reference guide to consumer activism. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO.

Cude, B. J. (2013). Drug safety and clinical trials. In W. Reiboldt & M. H. Mallers (Eds.), Consumer survival:  Encyclopedia of consumer rights, safety, and protection (pp. 335-338). Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO.Cai, Y., & Cude, B. (2012). Consumers’ adoption of online shopping. In Z. Yan (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Cyber Behavior (pp. 466-476). Hershey, PA: IGI Global.

Cude, B., & Kabaci, M. J. (2012). Financial education for college students. In D. Lambdin (Ed.), Financial Decisions Across the Lifespan: Problems, Programs, and Prospects (pp. 49-66). New York: Springer Science.

Cude, B. (2010). Engaging students in public policy analysis. In L. Johnson (Ed.), Chalk Talk: Teaching Tips from the UGA Teaching Academy (pp.134-135).  Athens, GA: University of Georgia.

Cai, Y., & Cude, B. (2008). Online shopping. In Jing Jian Xiao (Ed.), Advances in Consumer Finance Research (pp. 137-159). New York: Springer.

Current Research

Although I am retired, I continue to be an active researcher. I am working with a database that includes various data from college seniors: results (pre- and post) from a financial literacy knowledge test, data from the students' credit reports, and the results of various personality tests as well as financial stress tests. I'm also working on research projects related to insurance. 

Journal Articles

Ryan, M., & Cude, B. J. (2023). Factors that influence preferences for defined benefit plans versus defined contribution plans. American Economist. https://doi.org/10.1177/05694345231180

Logue, K. D., Schwartz, D., & Cude, B. J. (2022). The value and reality of transparent consumer insurance contracts. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4260410 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4260410

Cude, B. J. (2022). Financial literacy and education: What we know and still need to learn. The International Review of Financial Consumers, 7(2), 35-41. https://doi.org/10.36544/irfc.2022.7-2.6

*Zhang, H., Cude, B. J., Groshong, L., & Keith, K. (2022). The impact of state surprise medical billing protections on consumers with employer-sponsored health insurance. Journal of Insurance Regulation. https://doi.org/10.52227/25440.2022 Recipient of the 2022 Kimball L. Spencer Writing Award

*Kopot, C., & Cude, B. J. (2021). Channel depth or consistency? A study on establishing a sustainable omnichannel strategy for fashion department store retailers. Sustainability, 10, 6993. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13136993

*Zhang, L., Zhao, H., & Cude, B. (2021). Luxury brands join hands: Building interactive alliances on social media. Journal of Research in Interactive Marketing, 5(4), 787-803. https://doi.org/10.1108/JRIM-02-2020-0041

Cude, B. J. (2020). Financial education in the United States. The International Review of Financial Consumers, 5(2), 25-31. https://doi.org/10.36544/irfc.2020.5-2.4 (invited).

*Cude, B. J., Chatterjee, S. W., & Tavosi, J. (2021). Investment strategies, personality traits, and overconfidence: Evidence from Iran. Review of Integrative Business and Economics Research (RIBER), 10(3), 83-107.

*Ryan, M., † & Cude, B. (2021). Financial advice, plan choice, and retirement plan satisfaction. Journal of Financial Counseling and Planning, 32(1), 35-51. http://doi.org/10.1891/JFCP-18-00050

*Cude, B. J., Chatterjee, S. W., & Tavosi, J. (2020). Financial knowledge, personality traits, and risky borrowing behaviors in Iranian households. Sustainability, 12(18), 7608. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12187608

Cude, B. J. (2019). In memoriam – Thomas M. Brooks. Journal of Consumer Affairs, 53(3), 696-698. 10.1111/joca.12226

*Cude, B. J., Chatterjee, S.W., & Tavosi, J. (2019). Financial literacy among Iranian investors. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 43, 503-513. http://doi.org/10.1111/ijcs.12535

*Zhang, L.†, Cude, B., & Zhao, H.† (2020). Determinants of Chinese consumers’ purchase intentions for luxury goods, International Journal of Market Research, 62(3), 369-385. doi: 10.1177/1470785319853674

*Henager, R.†, & Cude, B. J. (2019). Financial literacy of high school graduates: Long- and short-term financial behaviors by age group. Journal of Family and Economic Issues. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10834-019-09626-2

* Robb, C., Chatterjee, S., Porto, N., & Cude, B. (2019). Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 40, 51-73. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10834-018-9599-y

*Nicolini, G., & Cude, B. (2019). The influence of financial well-being on pawnshop use. Journal of Consumer Affairs, 53(4), 1674-1692. https://doi.org/10.1111/joca.12244

*Short, K. J.†, Goetz, J. W., Cude, B. J., Sperling, L., Welch-Devine, M., & Chatterjee, S. (2019). A case for graduate student financial education. College Student Journal, 53

*Zhang, L.†, & Cude, B. J. (2018). Chinese consumers’ purchase intentions for luxury clothing: A comparison between luxury consumers and non-luxury consumers. Journal of International Consumer Marketing. https://doi.org/10.1080/08961530.2018.14662

*Beale, E. M., & Cude, B. J. (2017). College student attitudes toward debt. International Journal of Undergraduate Student Research and Creative Activities, 9(5). http://commons.pacificu.edu/ijurca

*Henager, R., & Cude, B. J. (2016). Financial literacy and long- and short-term financial behavior in different age groups. Journal of Financial Planning and Education, 27(1), 3-19.

*Duke, A. C., & Cude, B. J. (2015). Making personal contributions to Health Savings Accounts. Journal of Consumer Affairs. doi: 10.1111/joca.12094. [Early view published online September 2015.}

*Kabaci, M. J., & Cude, B. J. (2015). A Delphi Study to identify personal finance core concepts and competencies of first-generation college students. Family and Consumer Sciences Research Journal, 43(3), 244-258.

*Nicolini, G., & Cude, B. (2014). Conoscenze finanziarie e financial stress negli Usa: questione di (in)capacita o di reddito insufficiente? (Financial literacy, low incomes and financial sress in US households). Forum, 10, 41-60.

*Goetz, J. Chatterjee, S., & Cude, B. (2014). Suitability versus fiduciary standard: The perceived impacts of changing one’s standard of care. Journal of Financial Planning, 27(2), 20-23.

*Kunovskaya, I., Cude, B. J., & Alexeev, N. (2014). Evaluation of a financial literacy test using Classical Test Theory and Item Response Theory. Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 35, 516-531. doi: 10.1007/s1084-013-9386-8

*Nicolini, G., Cude, B.J., & Chatterjee, S. (2013). Financial literacy: A comparative study across four countries. International Journal of Consumer Studies, pp. 1-17. doi: 10.1111/ijcs.12050.

*Kunovskaya, I., Cude, B. J., & Koonce, J. (2013). Money management practices in transition economies: How findings from financial literacy surveys may inform home economics educators. International Journal of Home Economics, 6(1). http://www.ifhe.org/47.html.

*Cai, Y., & Cude, B. (2011).  Reference prices and consumers’ feeling of regret: An investigation of consumers’ use of an online price-bidding method. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 35(4), 441-447.

*Yu, H., & Cude, B. (2009). Perceptions of personalized advertising: Comparisons across advertisements delivered via three different types of media. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 33, 503-514.

James, R. N., III, & Cude, B. J. (2009). Trends in Journal of Consumer Affairs Feature Articles: 1967-2007. The Journal of Consumer Affairs, 43 (1), 155-169.

*Nunn, T. L., Sweaney, A. L., Cude, B. J., & Hathcote, J. M. (2009). Consumer receptiveness to universal design features.  International Journal of Consumer Studies, 33, 11-19.

Publications

Conference Proceedings

*Warmath, D., Thomas, M., & Cude, B. J. (2020). An evaluation of the impact of collegiate financial education. Consumer Interests Annual, 66. https://acci.memberclicks.net/assets/docs/CIA/CIA2020/WarmathDeeCIA2020.pdf

*Cude, B. J., & Herbert, V. (2020). Title insurance: An overlooked market. 2020 Consumer Interests Annual, 66. https://acci.memberclicks.net/assets/docs/CIA/CIA2020/CudeBrenda2CIA2020.pdf

*Routh, A., † & Cude, B. J. (2020). An analysis of millennials’ expenditures on pets [Poster]. Consumer Interests Annual, 66. https://acci.memberclicks.net/assets/docs/CIA/CIA2020/RouthAditiCIA2020.pdf

*Nicolini, G., & Cude, B. (2020). The influence of financial well-being on the use of Alternative Financial Services. [Abstract]. Consumer Interests Annual, 66. https://acci.memberclicks.net/assets/docs/CIA/CIA2020/CudeBrenda1CIA2020.pd

*Ryan, M. P.,† & Cude, B. J. (2019). Factors that impact satisfaction and regret associated with the choice between a Defined Benefit Plan and Defined Contribution Plan. [Abstract]. Consumer Interests Annual, 65. https://www.consumerinterests.org/cia2019

*Nicolini, G., & Cude, B. (2019). The influence of financial well-being on pawn shop use. [Abstract]. Consumer Interests Annual, 65. https://www.consumerinterests.org/cia2019

*Cude, B. J., Barrow, E.††, & Watkins, K.† (2019). Pet expenditures: An unexplored research topic. [Abstract]. Consumer Interests Annual, 65. https://www.consumerinterests.org/cia2019

*Short, K.†, Goetz, J., & Cude, B. (2018). Financial knowledge and stress: Making the case for targeted graduate student financial education. [Abstract]. Proceedings of the Association of Financial Counseling and Planning. https://www.afcpe.org/symposium/previous-symposium-highlights/

Kopot, C.A.†, Cude, B., & McClure, C.† (2019). What makes a retailer an omni-channel retailer? A case study examining Nordstrom's retail platform and strategy, 2019 ACRA Conference/Global Retail Conference, Tucson, AZ.

*Chatterjee, S., Cude, B. J., & Tavosi, J. (2018). Personality, overconfidence, and investment behavior: Evidence from Iran. [Abstract]. Proceedings of the Academic Research Colloquium for Financial Planning and Related Disciplines. https://centerforfinancialplanning.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/2019-ARC-Program.pdf

*Ryan, M. P., Ewen, H. H., Parks, J. M., & Cude, B. (2017). Do academicians prefer defined benefit plans? Does plan selection impact satisfaction? Consumer Interests Annual, 63. http:www.consumerinterests.org

*Cude, B. J. (2017). The influence of a high school personal finance education mandate on college freshman financial knowledge. Consumer Interests Annual, 63. http:www.consumerinterests.org

*Chatterjee, S., & Cude, B. (2017). Financial strain and student loan debt: Does financial literacy play a mitigating role? Consumer Interests Annual, 63. http:www.consumerinterests.org

*Danns, D., & Cude, B. (2015). Building and sustaining personal financial education programs on college/university campuses: The role of the program champion. In Consumer Interests Annual, 61. Retrieved from https://acci.memberclicks.net/assets/docs/CIA/CIA2015/p208%20danns%20cude.pdf

* Mathews, B., & Cude, B. J. (2015). College students and financial stress. In Consumer Interests Annual, 61. Retrieved from https://acci.memberclicks.net/assets/docs/CIA/CIA2015/p102%20mathews%20cude.pdf

*Reyna, A., & Cude, B. J. (2015). College seniors' credit use: Data from credit reports. In Consumer Interests Annual, 61. Retrieved from https://acci.memberclicks.net/assets/docs/CIA/CIA2015/e2a%20reyna%20cude.pdf

*Nicolini, G., & Cude, B. (2015). The use of pawnshops in the United States. In Consumer Interests Annual, 61. Retrieved from https://acci.memberclicks.net/assets/docs/CIA/CIA2015/d3c%20nicolini%20cude.pdf

Duke, A. C., & Cude, B. J. (2014). The long-term financial and health implications of early selection and maintenance of an HSA-eligible health insurance plan. 2014 American Council on Consumer Interests Annual Conference. Available at http://www.consumerinterests.org/cia2014

Nicolini, G., Cude, B. J., Chatterjee, S., & Henager, R. (In press) Measuring financial knowledge: The effectiveness of comprehensive vs. specific measures. 2014 American Council on Consumer Interests Conference.

*Cude, B. J., Kunovskaya, I., Kabaci, M. J., & Henry, T. (2013). Assessing changes in the financial knowledge of college seniors. In Consumer Interests Annual,59 available at http://www.consumerinterests.org/cia2013

*Kabaci, M. J., & Cude, B. J. (2013). Coming to consensus: A Delphi study to identify the personal finance core concepts and competencies for undergraduate college students. In Consumer Interests Annual, 59 available at http://www.consumerinterests.org/cia2013

*Duke, A.C., & Cude, B. J. (2013). Motivating personal contributions to Health Savings Accounts. In Consumer Interests Annual, 59 available at http://www.consumerinterests.org/cia2013

*Nicolini, G., & Chatterjee, S., & Cude, B. J. (2012). Financial literacy in the United States and abroad: A comparative study. [Abstract]. In Consumer Interests Annual available at http://www.consumerinterests.org/2012-Conference-papers.html

*Cude, B. J. (2012). College seniors’ financial capability: Knowledge, experience, and confidence in managing money and credit. [Abstract]. In Consumer Interests Annual available at http://www.consumerinterests.org/2012-Conference-papers.html

*Kabaci, M. J., & Cude, B. J. (2012). Coming to consensus: A Delphi Study to identify the personal finance core concepts and competencies for undergraduate college students. [Abstract]. In Consumer Interests Annual available at http://www.consumerinterests.org/2012-Conference-papers.html

Kunovskaya, I., & Cude, B. J. (2012). Comparative analysis of money management as a component of financial capability in transitional countries. Abstract]. In Consumer Interests Annual available at http://www.consumerinterests.org/2012-Conference-papers.html

*Miller, J., Mauldin, T., Cude, B., & Sabia, J. (2011). A new look at consumers’and clinicians’ options in smoking cessation: Smokeless tobacco, nicotine replacement therapy, Zyban, Chantix, and other interventions. [Poster]. In Consumer Interests Annual available at http://www.consumerinterests.org/CIA/2011/2011_MillerMauldinCudeSabia.pdf.

*Kunovskaya, I., & Cude, B. J. (2011). Financial awareness and consumer rights: An overview of assessments and policy implications, lessons from transitional economies. [Abstract]. American Council on Consumer Interests Annual Conference. In Consumer Interests Annual available at http://www.consumerinterests.org/CIA/2011/2011_KunovskayaCude.pdf. 

*Cude, B. J. (2011). Creating useful information for health insurance consumers.   [Abstract]. In E. Howlett, J., Kozup, & J. Kees (eds.), 2011 Marketing and Public Policy Conference Proceedings (pp. 173-174).

Recent Grants Received

Goetz, J., Chatterjee, S., & Cude, B. J. An examination of differences in the investment advisory process. AARP Andrus Foundation, 1/12-12/12, $55,000.

Goetz, J., Chatterjee, S., & Cude, B. J.  The impact of debt on college graduates’ well-being. University of Georgia Agricultural Experiment Station, 1/1/09-6/30/11.