Determinants of Pay-later Usage and Financial Vulnerability Among Generation Z: A Comparative Study between Indonesia and Malaysia

Abstract

Generasi Z banyak menggunakan layanan pay-later. Akan tetapi, penggunaan yang tidak bijak dapat menyebabkan kerentanan keuangan akibat akumulasi utang. Berdasarkan permasalahan tersebut, penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengkaji karakteristik responden dan variabel utama penelitian, yang meliputi literasi keuangan, eksposur media sosial, materialisme, penggunaan pay-later, dan kerentanan keuangan, pada 180 partisipan yang terdiri dari 110 responden Indonesia dan 70 responden Malaysia. Analisis data dilakukan menggunakan statistik deskriptif, analisis inferensial, dan Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) dengan bantuan perangkat lunak SPSS 25 dan SmartPLS. Hasil uji beda menunjukkan adanya perbedaan signifikan antara responden Indonesia dan Malaysia pada variabel eksposur media sosial, materialisme, dan kerentanan keuangan. Analisis korelasi menunjukkan adanya hubungan yang signifikan antara karakteristik responden dan variabel penelitian pada kedua kelompok. Selain itu, dari tujuh hipotesis yang diajukan, lima hipotesis didukung pada responden Indonesia dan tiga hipotesis didukung pada responden Malaysia.

Generation Z widely uses pay-later services. However, unwise usage may lead to financial vulnerability due to debt accumulation. In response to this issue, this study aims to examine respondent characteristics and key research variables, including financial literacy, social media exposure, materialism, pay-later usage, and financial vulnerability, among 180 participants, comprising 110 Indonesians and 70 Malaysians. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, inferential analysis, and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) with the support of SPSS 25 and SmartPLS software. The results of the comparative test indicate significant differences between Indonesian and Malaysian respondents in the variables of social media exposure, materialism, and financial vulnerability. Correlation analysis revealed significant relationships between respondent characteristics and the research variables in both groups. Furthermore, out of the seven proposed hypotheses, five were supported among Indonesian respondents, while three were supported among Malaysian respondents.