Poor people aren't stupid; bad decisions are from being overwhelmed, study finds

http://inplainsight.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/08/29/20247880-poor-people-arent-stupid-bad-decisions-are-from-being-overwhelmed-study-finds?lite

By Maggie Fox, Senior Health Writer, NBC News
Aug. 29, 2013

Being poor affects your ability to think, a new study shows. Those coping with severe financial stress don't have the mental bandwidth to deal with all of life’s troubles, a team of researchers reported Thursday.

They’ve done a series of tests that show when people are flush with cash, they can stop worrying and make better decisions. But having financial woes takes up so much attention, they often make poor decisions.

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Wealthy people may have nannies and accountants and drivers that free up their minds to focus on other problems. Poor people are often busy juggling inadequate and unreliable childcare, transportation and housing. “What do you do with people who need better financial management? Getting paid on a regular basis instead of sporadically (helps),” he says.

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It’s not just poverty that distracts people, says Shafir. Dieting and other distractions that have to do with making resources scarce do, too. It may be that rationing anything from food to time to money is especially distracting for the human brain. Shafir and Mullainathan have written a book on the issue "Scarcity: Why Having Too Little Means So Much," to be published in September.

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http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-08/uobc-pic082613.php

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-08/pu-pcp082613.php