The poor often behave in less capable ways, which can further perpetuate poverty, a research study has revealed. The research argues that the situation impedes individual cognitive function, and not necessarily because such individuals are lazy.
The study was conducted by Anandi Mani, Sendhil Mullainathan, Eldar Shafir, Jiaying Zhao of Universities from the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada.
The researchers said, “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.”
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This article was first published on 30th August 2013
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The poor often behave in less capable ways, which can further perpetuate poverty, a research study has revealed. The research argues that the situation impedes individual cognitive function, and not necessarily because such individuals are lazy. The study was conducted by Anandi Mani, Sendhil Mullainathan, Eldar Shafir, Jiaying Zhao of Universities from the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada.
The researchers said, “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.”
