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Too Many Brits Ignore the Debt Culture
A survey of over 2,000 British people has found that one in four avoid dealing with their finances deliberately if times are bad.
Despite increasing debts and concern about the economic situation (some 55 per cent of respondents said that they were worried about the credit crunch), the survey by digital TV service Freeview found that a quarter would do nothing about it.
The study involved the poll results being analysed by the University of Manchester’s head of psychological sciences, Professor Geoff Beattie, who outlined six distinct personality types when it came to financial management.
Most respondents (40 per cent) were “shrews”, who were relatively careful with their finances and shopped around to get a good deal.
The second largest group (29 per cent) was the “drifters”, people who were happy to freewheel through life and take the credit crunch in their stride.
However, around 8 per cent of people were “ostriches”, said Professor Beattie, who stuck their heads in the sand and avoided financial matters altogether. Just below this category came “alarmists” and “deniers”, who panicked and ignored their money problems respectively.
The results of the survey highlight the importance of getting appropriate advice on your debt problems before they get beyond the point of no return.
Professor Beattie said, "The research threw up some interesting results - not least that while the majority of people claim to be shrewd savers, many are burying their heads in the sand when it comes to their financial situation.
"Overall, Brits seem to have a high level of awareness of the oncoming credit crunch, but the trick now will be to look at money saving options."
The least common category - at 6 per cent – was the "opportunist", who tried to cash in on other people’s problems during times of financial hardship.
Debt Management News posted on 10 June 2008
