Teaching children financial responsibilityThe vast majority (91%) of South African parents teach their children to save money, reveals global market research company Synovate. American parents expect their children to do chores for their pocket money, while more than half of parents in Cyprus teach their kids about the stock market. These and other fascinating insights come from a survey of 1,596 parents of 5 to 17 year olds in South Africa, the United States, Canada, China, Cyprus and Slovakia, who were asked whether they give their children pocket money and how they are teaching them about financial responsibilities. Most parents surveyed globally believe it’s important that children learn about financial responsibility, with 78 percent teaching them how to save money and 72 percent showing children how to compare prices to get the best deal. This financial education can get pretty sophisticated, with one-quarter of parents globally showing their children how to use a checking account or credit card. 54 percent of Cypriot parents teach their kids about the stock market!
For some parents, it’s never too early to begin teaching children about financial responsibility: 23 percent of those surveyed do so as soon as their children start asking their parents to buy things for them, while another 23 percent begin their children’s financial education between the ages of 5 and 8. The majority of South African parents believe that children should start being educated between the ages of 5 and 12. In China, however, half of parents wait until their children are 13 or older before teaching them about finances.
Most South African children (52 percent) do not have to do chores / work to receive their pocket money. This is compared to 96% of children in the US who do have to earn their allowance. At the other end of the scale, a large majority of children in Cyprus (89 percent), China (77 percent) and Slovakia (75 percent) don’t have to lift a finger for their pocket money. CURIOSITIES> If they can afford it, South African and Cypriot and parents are more likely to buy an expensive item that their children desperately want. > 69 percent of Canadian parents, and 66 percent of American ones, do not involve their children in saving for their own education. > 30 percent of Slovakian parents – more than their counterparts in any other country surveyed – teach their children how to use a checking account or credit card.
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