Is Monetary Policy Too Complex for the Public? Evidence from the UK

Adriel Jost

Issue
2017-15

Pages
49

JEL classification
D83, E52, E58, I21

Keywords
Economic literacy, Monetary policy, Bank of England

Year
2017

Central banks have increased their engagement in the information and education of the broad public. But what can be said about the nonprofessional’s knowledge of monetary policy and central banking? Based on the Bank of England’s Inflation Attitudes Survey, I construct a score to capture the central banking knowledge of the respondents. I show that the average British person displays limited knowledge of central banking. At the same time, the data reveal that satisfaction with the Bank of England’s policies increases with a better understanding of monetary policy.