Money and Meaning: What Finances say to Parents

Nothing can ruin a mood like talking about debt or personal finances. Yet a recent study reveals that for parents in particular, financial discussions can make the idea of parenting less meaningful.

According to researchers from the University of British Columbia, they found a direct link between money and parental wellbeing.

For the study, researchers showed some participants money while testing the influence of the parents' objectives as they were taking care of their children at a festival. For one group, parents were  asked to read a paragraph regarding the festival in terms of productivity and achievement. For another, they were asked to read about the festival via the context of satisfying the needs of their children with expectation of direct return. Following, both groups were surveyed about parenting and sense of meaning.

"This design allowed us to see whether money compromises meaning because of the conflict between the goals associated with money and the goals and the behaviors that parenting normally demands," said Kostadin Kushlev of the university, via a press release.

The study results also showed that for women in particular, finances played a bigger issue in the concept of parenting.

"Money seems to compromise meaning for mothers but not for fathers when they are spending time with their children," Kushlev said. "This finding is consistent with other, unpublished research that suggests that money tends to activate achievement and self-promotion motivations more strongly in women than men."

What do you think?

More information regarding the study can be found via the journal Psychological Science.