The poor often behave in less capable ways, which can further perpetuate poverty. We hypothesize that poverty directly impedes cognitive function and present two studies that test this hypothesis. First, we experimentally induced thoughts about finances and found that this reduces cognitive performance among poor but not in well-off participants. Second, we examined the cognitive function of farmers over the planting cycle. We found that the same farmer shows diminished cognitive performance before harvest, when poor, as compared with after harvest, when rich. This cannot be explained by differences in time available, nutrition, or work effort. Nor can it be explained with stress: Although farmers do show more stress before harvest, that does not account for diminished cognitive performance. Instead, it appears that poverty itself reduces cognitive capacity. We suggest that this is because poverty-related concerns consume mental resources, leaving less for other tasks. These data provide a previously unexamined perspective and help explain a spectrum of behaviors among the poor. We discuss some implications for poverty policy.
http://science.sciencemag.org/content/341/6149/976
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 06 2018, @11:29AM (1 child)
I've experienced this...anybody who shops at harbor freight has. Sometimes you have to do what you have to do, but its not difficult to get out of.
(Score: 2) by Immerman on Tuesday November 06 2018, @03:12PM
> but its not difficult to get out of.
That depends entirely on your available income stream. Before you can start getting out of the hole, you need to accumulate enough savings to start being able to buy the better-investment products. And when you're already doing most of your durable goods shopping at second-hand stores, and still having trouble keeping enough beans and rice on the table, that's not so easy to do.