And the lucky shall inherit the earth: Perceiving the causes of financial and failure

The perception of poverty and wealth among teenagers

This study is concerned with the perception of poverty and wealth among high-school teenagers. Over 300 teenagers completed a questionnaire which probed their perceptions of the attributions and consequences of poverty and wealth, and requested them to estimate the income for both a specified "poor" and "rich" man. The results indicate that all groups in this sample emphasized the significance of the family and downplayed the significance of luck when dealing with poverty and wealth. Further, the groups emphasized the economic consequences of poverty and wealth and they did not rate their psychological consequences as being of much importance. The results are discussed in terms of the small literature relevant to this topic.