Comments on: How Wealth Shapes Personality

By: Richard Brookes

Richard Brookes — Sun, 10 May 2015 14:16:08 +0000

Compare this with Joseph Chamberlain on the urban poor, talking about a stevedore with irregular work:

On reflection, some facts appear specially noteworthy: first, that wages which fluctuate so greatly ought to be considered as links in a chain, the weakest of which measures the strength of the whole. This man's condition was that of one who could fairly reckon on twenty-five or thirty shillings a week, the extra ten, fifteen, or even twenty shillings he might earn, benefited him little if at all. They were uncertain, and so went chiefly in "boozing."

The Radical Programme, 1885. p.67

By: Rollory

Rollory — Tue, 05 May 2015 12:43:55 +0000

I would add that my grandmother, who grew up dirt-poor in a farming household, has repeatedly insisted to me that farmers have been necessarily bred for foresight and thrift and planning, as compared to mining or industrial communities where the paycheck comes every 2 weeks regardless.

She and her husband put enough by to pay for housing (apartments, houses, whatever) for all their children.

By: Kent

Kent — Mon, 04 May 2015 18:06:07 +0000

Yes, there really is an obvious question of causality. One could just as easily have written a book about how certain personality traits lead to wealth or poverty. People who “go with the flow and take things as they come” aren’t simply coping with poverty’s uncertainty, the are engaging in behavior that perpetuates poverty. Similarly, people who “manage their resources by planning” have a better chance at building wealth.

By: Alrenous

Alrenous — Mon, 04 May 2015 11:51:57 +0000

Not really much of a question. Yes, farmer and bartender incomes are harder to deal with, but far from impossible. Save in times of plenty so in lean times, there is enough. Or, best, treat every time as lean and budget accordingly, treating times of plenty as unexpected windfalls.

The sad thing is wealth does affect personality, so it’s not like they were barking up the wrong tree. As one example dynamic, someone who grows up in plenty often learns the world has enough, so they’re not materialistic. Someone who grows up in poverty learns to be desperately grasping, eternally trying to fill their child-self’s unfilled needs.