The Value of Financial Advice: A Narrative Review and Conceptual Frameworks

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.61190/fsr.v33i4.4128

Keywords:

Financial planning, Value of advice, Wellbeing, Professions, Narrative review

Abstract

Efforts to increase the low global consumer uptake and recognition of financial advice as a trusted profession have been hampered by low financial capability, distrust of financial advisors, and soaring costs. While considerable research has been published on the value of financial advice, a synthesis of scholarship is surprisingly absent, leading to a lack of credible information on the outcomes of professional financial advice. To determine the ways in which value has been contextualized and measured and the extent to which value has been substantiated, this themes-based narrative review comprehensively examines tangible outcomes, such as investment performance, and less tangible components of value relating to consumer wellbeing and the client-advisor relationship. We conclude by proposing a conceptual framework of the value of financial advice to support the development of a more consistent, rigorous and coherent body of literature across jurisdictions, with increased transparency for consumers and other stakeholders of financial advice.

Author Biographies

Associate Professor Kirsten L. MacDonald, Griffith University, Gold Coast campus, Australia

Kirsten is the Deputy Head of the Department of Accounting, Finance and Economics at Griffith University. Her contributions to teaching and learning have been recognised with numerous citations and awards, including the Griffith Business School Group Educational Leadership Award, 2020 Griffith Awards for Excellence in Teaching and a 2011 Australian Learning and Teaching Council citation for our team's outstanding contributions to student learning. She is the Co-Chair of the Financial Planning Academics Forum, a member of the Financial Planning Education Council and an Associate Editor for the CFP Board's Financial Planning Review. Her research expertise is in the areas of personal finance and financial education with consultation work, grants and publications focusing on retirement outcomes and education for emerging and existing financial professionals. She is currently focused on a research collaboration exploring the value of professional financial advice, including the role of advice in a crisis.

Ms Karen L. Wildman, Griffith University

Karen is a Research Fellow in Griffith Business School. She has wide-ranging experience in quantitative and qualitative research across multiple disciplines including business, psychology and tourism. She is also a former small business owner. Karen’s research interests are in behavioural finance, financial psychology and the value of financial advice.

Mrs Ellana Loy, Griffith University, Gold Coast campus, Australia

Ellana Loy is a Research Fellow in Griffith Business School’s Department of Accounting, Finance and Economics. She is one of the lead researchers undertaking a program of work related to the value of financial advice. Prior to joining Griffith University, Ellana worked as a senior analyst for the Reserve Bank of Australia for 6 years. She worked across a number of departments, including the Economic Analysis and Financial Markets Departments, writing both analytical market updates and research reports about the Australian economy and domestic and international financial markets. Ellana was the recipient of the RBA’s Outstanding Achievement Award in both 2016 and 2017.

Professor Mark Brimble, Griffith University, Logan campus, Australia

Mark is Dean (Online Strategy) at Griffith University and a Professor of Finance in the School’s Department of Accounting, Finance and Economics. Mark’s active research interests are in financial markets, sustainable finance, personal finance, finance education and financial literacy, with publications in various national and international journals including Accounting and Finance, Corporate Governance: An International Perspective, Housing Theory and Society, Australian Tax Forum and Higher Education Research and Development.

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Published

2025-12-15

How to Cite

MacDonald, K., Wildman, K., Loy, E., & Brimble, M. (2025). The Value of Financial Advice: A Narrative Review and Conceptual Frameworks. Financial Services Review, 33(4), 134–163. https://doi.org/10.61190/fsr.v33i4.4128

Issue

Vol. 33 No. 4 (2025): Financial Services Review

Section

New Original Submission

License

Copyright (c) 2025 Associate Professor Kirsten L. MacDonald, Ms Karen L. Wildman, Mrs Ellana Loy, Professor Mark Brimble

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