Financial Education and Cooperative Culture Among Clients of the Esfuerzo Langueño Cooperative, Honduras: Assessment and Mathematical Modeling

Abstract

Financial education is a formative responsibility of cooperatives, particularly when they provide services in territories where decisions about savings, credit, and institutional participation directly affect household stability. This study aimed to design and test, using synthetic data, a mathematical model explaining the relationships among financial education, mastery of cooperative principles, decision-making self-efficacy, and cooperative participation. This quantitative, cross-sectional, instrumental, explanatory study used 348 records reflecting plausible characteristics of clients of the Esfuerzo Langueño Cooperative in Honduras. Measurement was based on a performance assessment comprising six situational cases and a four-level analytical rubric, supplemented with behavioral indicators. We applied descriptive analyses, classical test theory, Rasch modeling, confirmatory factor analysis, structural equation modeling, and cluster analysis. Reliability was satisfactory (ω = .89), and the four-factor model demonstrated an adequate fit (CFI = .958; TLI = .951; RMSEA = .047; SRMR = .041). The structural model explained 56.8% of the variance in cooperative participation. Financial competence directly affected self-efficacy (β = .58; p < .001) and indirectly affected participation, while the internalization of cooperative principles showed the strongest direct effect on participation (β = .41; p < .001). Cluster analysis identified three profiles: vulnerable, functional, and strategic-cooperative. The simulated findings demonstrate the potential value of replacing self-report questionnaires with authentic tasks and multivariate models. The study concludes that a cooperative education system should integrate financial calculations, democratic deliberation, and differentiated support, although empirical validation with real clients remains essential.