Exploring the Effects of Financial Knowledge on Better Decision-Making in SMEs

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

 

The article addresses the important problem of financial education of owners and managers of small and medium-sized enterprises in South America. Although this issue has already been studied in the context of, for example, Europe or the USA, the added value is the study of entrepreneurs from Peru.

The conceptualization and operationalization of the research problem, the selection of the sample and the statistical analysis of the data are done correctly.

It is still necessary to supplement the scientific literature with a position from the last two or three years. It is also advisable to make a broader comparison of the obtained results with counterparts from other continents and cultural circles.

Author Response

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Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The paper aims to investigate the impact of entrepreneurs' financial literacy on the quality of decision-making.

The paper aims to investigate the impact of entrepreneurs' financial literacy on the quality of decision-making. As a general assessment, the paper has problems with the structure and methodology used.

Introduction. The section is too long and should be rewritten. It should highlight the research gap and research questions.

Theoretical Framework. I consider this section to be underdeveloped. It should be extended (by identifying and analyzing newer and more relevant scientific works on the topic).

In addition, authors should stay focused on the research topic and critically analyze the collected literature (not just summarize it).

Materials. The main part of the section can be integrated into section 3.

Methodology. The authors do not define the target population. They also do not specify how respondents are identified and recruited.

Results. The authors do not define the target population. They also do not specify how respondents are identified and recruited.

Discussion. Conclusions. These sections should provide a more in-depth discussion of the authors' findings and should not reiterate the results outlined in the previous section. The limitations of the research are not highlighted and the theoretical and practical implications are briefly and unclearly presented.

Author Response

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Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 3 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Education in finance is very important nowadays, both in business and in private life. Research on the relationship between financial education and decision making has been of interest to researchers around the world. Author(s) emphasize the importance of financial education for school children, women, and marginalized communities. Therefore, I find the paper on this issue interesting and timely.

The author(s) clearly specified the research aim, methods and their application. However, I have the following comments and suggestions:

-          - The paper would have benefited greatly if the research model (variables and their dimensions) had been expressed graphically and the investigated relationships had been added to the graph.

- Research hypotheses should not only be stated as general and specific, but specific wording of the general null and alternative hypotheses and the specific null and alternative hypotheses should be added.

-          - In the conclusion, add research limitations and subsequent recommendations for further research.

After incorporating the comments, I recommend the article for publication.

 

 

Author Response

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Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Round 2

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

I appreciated the authors' effort to improve the paper based on the reviewers' suggestions, but I consider the statistical solutions used to analyze the data to be of a low level of complexity. This is the main reason why I maintain my initial recommendation. Moreover, the suggestions made in the first review report regarding the Discussion section remain valid.

Author Response

Dear Reviewer,

We are thankful for your suggestions, and for taking the time to read through our efforts. In connection with your comment on the complexity level of the statistical solutions used, we have included a statement in the discussion part of the paper related to the effect that the statistical method applied is relevant to the goals and objectives of the study (lines 673 to 680).

Our view is that the chosen statistical approach is enough to obtain meaningful and appropriate insights regarding the relationship between the offer of financial literacy and the choices made by users of microcredit in the Province of Chanchamayo. Moreover, we have discussed previous modifications that have been made in that section (lines 686 to 701), based on suggestions given in your first report.

We once again express our sincere gratitude to you for your precious advice that has helped enhance the quality of the research.

Kindest regards,

The Authors

Round 3

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

I appreciate the authors' efforts and persistence in improving the paper, but my reserves about the methodology, also expressed in previous review reports, remain valid.

This is why I consider that the overall recommendation previously provided should be maintained.

Author Response

Dear Reviewer,

Thank you for your continued feedback and dedication to improving our paper.

We have made efforts to address your concerns regarding the methodology by clarifying the relevance of our statistical approach and suggesting future research directions that could explore more complex analyses (lines 680 to 689).

We appreciate your insights and hope that our revisions reflect our commitment to enhancing the quality of our research.

Kind regards,

The Authors