Research suggests people who grew up with very little and later accumulated real wealth don't feel wealthy - they feel temporarily safe, and there's a difference - Silicon Canals

"When people living in poverty were asked to think about a major unexpected expense, their cognitive performance dropped by the equivalent of about 14 IQ points. The brain, it turns out, doesn't just respond to not having enough. It rewires around it."

"Their landmark research found that poverty doesn't just limit what people can buy. It impedes cognitive function itself. When the hypothetical expense jumped to $1,500, the poorer participants' cognitive performance dropped significantly."

"The critical insight wasn't that poor people are less capable. It's that the experience of scarcity hijacks mental bandwidth, leading to a decline in cognitive performance."

Research by Sendhil Mullainathan and Eldar Shafir reveals that poverty affects cognitive function. When faced with unexpected expenses, individuals in poverty experience a drop in cognitive performance equivalent to 14 IQ points. This decline is not due to a lack of intelligence but rather the mental bandwidth consumed by scarcity. The experience of financial insecurity creates a lasting vigilance, affecting how individuals perceive their financial stability even after achieving a better financial situation.

Read at Silicon Canals