Money Attitudes, Personality and Chronic Impulse Buying

This paper reports on a study of the relationship between demographic, personality and attitudinal variables and impulsive buying (a consumer's tendency to buy spontaneously, unreflectively, and immediately); using secondary analysis of data from common participants in two large national surveys of British adults: one survey contributing data on impulsive buying, demographics and money attitudes; and the second, a Big Five personality trait measure. In particular, we focus on the attitudes characterized by the extent to which individuals associate money with security, freedom, power and love. Younger females and those with higher household income were more likely to engage in impulsive buying. Correlational and regression analysis showed that those high on Neuroticism and Extraversion and those low on Conscientiousness were more likely to be impulse buyers. All four money attitudes were related to impulsive buying (Money as Security most strongly). A hierarchical regression indicated that demographic variables accounted for 3%, personality a further 9% and money attitudes a further 13% of the variance showing that these three sets of variables accounted for around a quarter of the variance. Implications are considered for educational and therapeutic interventions in reducing maladaptive impulsive buying

Microfinance and climate change adaptation: insights from Bangladesh

Climate change is one of the biggest environmental problems facing humanity, particularly for developing countries which are highly vulnerable to environmental and climate hazards. If citizens of these countries are to adapt there must be sufficient incentives, knowledge, resources, skills, and an absence of market failures and barriers that discourage adaptation. Growing interest exists in how microfinance can facilitate adaptation. However, much of the existing literature remains conjectural, positively biased, and insufficiently uses adaptation concepts. Additional studies of microfinance-adaptation linkages adopting an adaptation lens are needed to address knowledge gaps. The aim of this thesis has been to contribute to microfinance-adaptation literature by examining conceptual arguments and exploring empirical data. To achieve this, a pragmatic philosophy, mixed-methods approach, and an abductive strategy were adopted. The research location was Noapara Village, Bangladesh, providing a representative case-study of the local area. The unit of analysis was the household, facilitating understanding of relationships between microfinance, livelihoods, autonomous adaptation, and environmental and climate hazards. Methods included a household survey, semi-structured interviews, and focus group discussions. The fieldwork was iterative and sequenced to facilitate subsequent research and triangulation. Analytical categorisation was undertaken iteratively, building on initial descriptive coding and drawing on literature themes to interpret the material. The first thesis objective was to explore features and patterns of autonomous household livelihood adaptation to better understand responses to environmental and climate hazards. Most households were found to have implemented reactive measures reducing livelihood risk. Two forms of transformational adaptation linked to socioeconomic status emerged: low-cost involuntary measures which reduce income, and high-cost voluntary measures taking advantage of emerging opportunities. The second objective was to explore the influence microfinance had on household efforts to reduce vulnerability to environmental and climate hazards. Households used credit to cope and adapt but credit limits prevented many households from adopting transformative opportunities. Often credit usage sacrificed longer term prospects for livelihood improvement for short-term security and at times led to over-indebtedness. The third objective was to explore how local-level microfinance institution representatives have responded to environmental and climate hazards and their ability to foster adaptation. Branch managers have done little in response to the problems posed by flooding, and are unable to screen clients or effectively manage aggregated risk. Reducing vulnerability by encouraging adaptation among clients holds promise but climate proofing products and partnering with other institutions is required. The thesis demonstrates that the existing literature relies on an overly simplistic view of potential microfinance-adaptation linkages, arguably due to insufficient consideration of adaptation concepts. However, the microfinance-adaptation literature is in its early stages. This thesis has contributed by providing a more nuanced study, producing different types of data, employing different data collection and interpretation approaches, and exploring both positive and negative linkages. This thesis arguably represents the first in-depth empirical study using an adaptation lens. Several important research findings were uncovered which show both signs of promise and concern. Future research can build upon this thesis, deepening understanding of how and under what conditions microfinance can reduce vulnerability. In summary, this thesis found that microfinance currently does not provide the necessary ingredients households require to transformationally adapt. Considering that future projections estimate non-marginal change to be ever more necessary, adaptation planners cannot rely upon the microfinance system to facilitate sufficient adaptation levels. The microfinance system can arguably benefit as much from adaptation planning as adaptation planning can benefit from microfinance. However, microfinance offers a potential conduit to support vulnerable communities. Microfinance programmes need climate proofing, so that investment patterns incentivised are ‘climate-compatible’. Additionally, microfinance institutions need to partner with other development actors to ensure households receive the holistic support required to adapt and thus reduce institutional vulnerability

Microfinance and climate change adaptation: insights from Bangladesh

Climate change is one of the biggest environmental problems facing humanity, particularly for developing countries which are highly vulnerable to environmental and climate hazards. If citizens of these countries are to adapt there must be sufficient incentives, knowledge, resources, skills, and an absence of market failures and barriers that discourage adaptation. Growing interest exists in how microfinance can facilitate adaptation. However, much of the existing literature remains conjectural, positively biased, and insufficiently uses adaptation concepts. Additional studies of microfinance-adaptation linkages adopting an adaptation lens are needed to address knowledge gaps. The aim of this thesis has been to contribute to microfinance-adaptation literature by examining conceptual arguments and exploring empirical data. To achieve this, a pragmatic philosophy, mixed-methods approach, and an abductive strategy were adopted. The research location was Noapara Village, Bangladesh, providing a representative case-study of the local area. The unit of analysis was the household, facilitating understanding of relationships between microfinance, livelihoods, autonomous adaptation, and environmental and climate hazards. Methods included a household survey, semi-structured interviews, and focus group discussions. The fieldwork was iterative and sequenced to facilitate subsequent research and triangulation. Analytical categorisation was undertaken iteratively, building on initial descriptive coding and drawing on literature themes to interpret the material. The first thesis objective was to explore features and patterns of autonomous household livelihood adaptation to better understand responses to environmental and climate hazards. Most households were found to have implemented reactive measures reducing livelihood risk. Two forms of transformational adaptation linked to socioeconomic status emerged: low-cost involuntary measures which reduce income, and high-cost voluntary measures taking advantage of emerging opportunities. The second objective was to explore the influence microfinance had on household efforts to reduce vulnerability to environmental and climate hazards. Households used credit to cope and adapt but credit limits prevented many households from adopting transformative opportunities. Often credit usage sacrificed longer term prospects for livelihood improvement for short-term security and at times led to over-indebtedness. The third objective was to explore how local-level microfinance institution representatives have responded to environmental and climate hazards and their ability to foster adaptation. Branch managers have done little in response to the problems posed by flooding, and are unable to screen clients or effectively manage aggregated risk. Reducing vulnerability by encouraging adaptation among clients holds promise but climate proofing products and partnering with other institutions is required. The thesis demonstrates that the existing literature relies on an overly simplistic view of potential microfinance-adaptation linkages, arguably due to insufficient consideration of adaptation concepts. However, the microfinance-adaptation literature is in its early stages. This thesis has contributed by providing a more nuanced study, producing different types of data, employing different data collection and interpretation approaches, and exploring both positive and negative linkages. This thesis arguably represents the first in-depth empirical study using an adaptation lens. Several important research findings were uncovered which show both signs of promise and concern. Future research can build upon this thesis, deepening understanding of how and under what conditions microfinance can reduce vulnerability. In summary, this thesis found that microfinance currently does not provide the necessary ingredients households require to transformationally adapt. Considering that future projections estimate non-marginal change to be ever more necessary, adaptation planners cannot rely upon the microfinance system to facilitate sufficient adaptation levels. The microfinance system can arguably benefit as much from adaptation planning as adaptation planning can benefit from microfinance. However, microfinance offers a potential conduit to support vulnerable communities. Microfinance programmes need climate proofing, so that investment patterns incentivised are ‘climate-compatible’. Additionally, microfinance institutions need to partner with other development actors to ensure households receive the holistic support required to adapt and thus reduce institutional vulnerability

Personality and wealth

To what extent do personality traits predict wealth in adulthood over and above standard demographic factors? In all 3240 adults in the UK completed a Big Five personality test and reported on their property wealth, savings and investments, and their physical valuable items. We also had data on their age, education, household income and gender. Correlations and regressions showed that the demographics, particularly age and income were, as expected clearest correlates of wealth. Conscientious was positively and agreeableness, neuroticism and extraversion were negatively associated with savings and investments. The data pointed clearly to conscientiousness as the most important personality trait in wealth accumulation. Implications of these results as well as limitations of the study are discussed

Financial distress and money attitudes

This study was concerned with the construction and validation of a Financial Distress Index (FDI). A stratified (UK) sample of 2000 adults completed the new measure as well as measures of financial anxiety, general stress and money attitudes. The FDI correlated highly with general stress and financial anxiety, establishing concurrent validity. For the FDI, men scored lower than women, there was an inverse association with age and FDI was lower for the highest income bands. A unit increase in seeing money as security was associated with a reduction in the FDI of 16%, whereas unit increases in money as generosity, freedom, or power and status were associated with an increase in the FDI of, respectively 21%, 24% and 19%. Implications and limitations are discussed

Money attitudes, financial capabilities, and impulsiveness as predictors of wealth accumulation

In this study we examined three correlates of personal wealth–financial capability, buying impulsiveness, and attitudes to money in a large UK adult sample (N = 90,184). We were interested in how these psychological variables related to personal wealth controlling for well-established demographic correlates: age, education, gender, and household income. We drew on three personal wealth variables based on savings and investments, property wealth and personal items. Using correlational and regression analysis we tested three specific hypotheses which each received support. Our variables accounted for around half the variance with respect to property value, and two thirds with respect to investments. The hierarchical regression onto the savings and investment factor showed two thirds of the variance was accounted for: the demographic variables accounted for 27% of the variance, money attitudes an additional 14%; financial capability an additional 24% and buying impulsivity no additional variance. Age, income, and planning ahead were the most powerful and consistent predictors of wealth variables, with associating money with security as an important predictor for savings and investments. Implications for helping improve financial literacy and capability are noted. Limitations are acknowledged

Financial capability, money attitudes and socioeconomic status: risks for experiencing adverse financial events

The risk of experiencing adverse financial events (e.g. bankruptcy) depends on the world economy and on individual differences in financial and psychological variables. Analysing data from 109,472 British survey respondents, this study reports the risks associated with financial capabilities, money attitudes, and socio-economic status for suffering negative financial outcomes. The results show that (1) socio-economic status is associated with financial capabilities but not with money attitudes; (2) money attitudes and financial capabilities are largely independent; (3) money attitudes and financial capabilities each contribute independently to the risk of experiencing adverse financial outcomes, even after adjusting for socio-economic status; and (4) financial capabilities are greater risk factors of adverse financial outcomes than money attitudes; the latter, however, are likely to be promising targets for interventions

Drinking and Flying: Does Alcohol Consumption Affect the Flight and Echolocation Performance of Phyllostomid Bats?

In the wild, frugivorous and nectarivorous bats often eat fermenting fruits and nectar, and thus may consume levels of ethanol that could induce inebriation. To understand if consumption of ethanol by bats alters their access to food and general survival requires examination of behavioural responses to its ingestion, as well as assessment of interspecific variation in those responses. We predicted that bats fed ethanol would show impaired flight and echolocation behaviour compared to bats fed control sugar water, and that there would be behavioural differences among species. (Chiroptera, Phyllostomidae) sugar water (44 g of table sugar in 500 ml of water) or sugar water with ethanol before challenging them to fly through an obstacle course while we simultaneously recorded their echolocation calls. We used bat saliva, a non-invasive proxy, to measure blood ethanol concentrations ranging from 0 to >0.3% immediately before flight trials. Flight performance and echolocation behaviour were not significantly affected by consumption of ethanol, but species differed in their blood alcohol concentrations after consuming it.The bats we studied display a tolerance for ethanol that could have ramifications for the adaptive radiation of frugivorous and nectarivorous bats by allowing them to use ephemeral food resources over a wide span of time. By sampling across phyllostomid genera, we show that patterns of apparent ethanol tolerance in New World bats are broad, and thus may have been an important early step in the evolution of frugivory and nectarivory in these animals

Effect of a family-centered, secondhand smoke intervention to reduce respiratory illness in indigenous infants in Australia and New Zealand: a randomized controlled trial

Introduction: Secondhand smoke (SHS) is a significant cause of acute respiratory illness (ARI) and 5 times more common in indigenous children. A single-blind randomized trial was undertaken to determine the efficacy of a family centered SHS intervention to reduce ARI in indigenous infants in Australia and New Zealand. Methods: Indigenous mothers/infants from homes with ≥1 smoker were randomized to a SHS intervention involving 3 home visits in the first 3 months of the infants\u27 lives (plus usual care) or usual care. The primary outcome was number of ARI-related visits to a health provider in the first year of life. Secondary outcomes, assessed at 4 and 12 months of age, included ARI hospitalization rates and mothers\u27 report of infants\u27 SHS exposure (validated by urinary cotinine/creatinine ratios [CCRs]), smoking restrictions, and smoking cessation. Results: Two hundred and ninety-three mother/infant dyads were randomized and followed up. Three quarters of mothers smoked during pregnancy and two thirds were smoking at baseline (as were their partners), with no change for more than 12 months. Reported infant exposure to SHS was low (≥95% had smoke-free homes/cars). Infant CCRs were higher if one or both parents were smokers and if mothers breast fed their infants. There was no effect of the intervention on ARI events [471 intervention vs. 438 usual care (reference); incidence rate ratio = 1.10, 95% confidence intervals (CI) = 0.88-1.37, p = .40]. Conclusions: Despite reporting smoke-free homes/cars, mothers and their partners continue to smoke in the first year of infants\u27 lives, exposing them to SHS. Emphasis needs to be placed on supporting parents to stop smoking preconception, during pregnancy, and postnatal