Does not describe a financial illiterate deepen America better than the cacophony that surrounds a recent $ 656 million lottery jackpot. “People spend exorbitant amounts of money on a get-rich quick schemes,” said financial adviser Peter D’Arruda. “They are too trusting and do not understand how the financial world works.”

Findings dismay those who have commissioned a survey for six years. “Troubling,” says Gail Cunningham, spokesperson for the National Foundation for credit counseling. Among the most alarming results: 56 percent of U.S. adults admit they don’t have the budget; a third did not pay all of their bills on time; and 39 percent carry credit card debt from month to month. These numbers are generally worse off than they were a year ago.

Who is to blame for this fiasco? Schools, for one, does not teach responsible behaviour of consumers. Only four States require that students take personal finance class in high school. Apathetic consumers will not educate themselves, and companies are greedy happy to let them keep buying, because it’s good for business – at least in the short term. Compounding the problem, the Americans face a daunting array of complex investment options. “Exaggeration did little more than cloud judgement and cause emotional reaction,” said Guy Penn, financial adviser based in O’Fallon, MO.