Results show how formative moments in life, generational events, and parental instruction can leave lasting financial impressions
Co-operators, which is rebranding itself from an insurance business to a holistic, personalized financial-services firm, has unveiled the results of new research it commissioned looking into Canadians’ financial mindsets.
In a poll of roughly 1,500 Canadians conducted on the online Angus Reid Forum panel, 66% said they’ve had “shock moments” in life – job loss, loss of a loved one, divorce, etc – that led to a dramatic change in their financial situation.
An even bigger majority (86%) said that people become more conscious about money in the aftermath of societal shock moments such as the Great Depression. The COVID-19 pandemic was another example of such a moment in time, which 55% of respondents said made them realize the need to revisit and rearrange their financial plans.
The survey also found almost four out of five Canadians (78%) said their upbringing has had a lasting unconscious impact on their financial decision-making. Seven out of 10 (69%), meanwhile, said they were never properly taught about financial security of planning as they headed into adulthood.
Numerous other data points suggest many Canadians regard their finances as a point of shame, with 45% saying they don’t like talking about their money considering how much better they think they should be doing at this point. Three in 10 (29%) admit to feeling guilty over not having their money, investments, and insurance policies in order as their parents expected, and 92% said they’d fall short of the honour roll if they were to evaluate how well they’d acted on their financial goals to date.
"These data points unequivocally validate what we've already been hearing from people on the ground across the country for a while now," said Emmie Fukuchi, Co-operators’ EVP, chief digital and marketing officer. "Canadians have been feeling unsupported when it comes to building their financial strength and security; they feel like they're in catch-up mode."
It’s hardly surprising, then, that nearly two thirds of Canadians (64%) shared a desire to have a person or place they could go to get authentic, customized financial advice. The goal, ultimately, is to enter a virtuous financial cycle of happiness: 55% of respondents believe developing a happier mindset can attract more money into their lives, and 78% believed money can buy happiness.
"These findings suggest that we like to believe we are completely logical in the way we approach money and building security, but we are not," said Dr. Gillian Mandich, Canada's first happiness researcher, scientist, and founder of The International Happiness Institute of Health Science Research. "[W]e are actually driven by emotions and memories … and we need to recognize our own money mindset imprints in order to relieve the pressure we are currently feeling."
