Who plans for rainy days?

Reading "Britain in 2009" by the Economic & Social Research Council pointed me to an interesting article entitled "Who plans for rainy days?"

The article is from three researchers at the Universities of York and Bristol - David Abbott, Deborah Quilgars and Anwen Jones - who studied perceptions and attitudes towards money and financial planning amongst various segments of society.

Their findings prove interesting:

• Job security was closely
  linked to worries about people's present and future health.  Less-abled people are particularly vulnerable due to the fact that financial products such as insurance, which might provide some safety net,
  were often not available to them or was at an extra cost that made it hard to save and plan for the future.

• Being Christian or Muslim had some impact on people's
  attitudes towards money and debt. Christians felt that
  their faith could provide a ‘buffer' against possible risky life
  events whilst Muslims resist debt, or pay it off as quickly as
  possible.

• Gay,
  lesbian and bisexual people sought jobs
  where they would feel safer from discrimination and increase their job
  security. Most said they didn't believe in a ‘pink pound' and resisted
  pressure to over-spend as part of a so-called ‘gay lifestyle'.

• Asian
  men prioritise work and working hard as a way of
  obtaining financial security, whilst black people did not
  think that 'being black' had much impact upon their views. 

The research continues, with the first white paper available in full from Forum: Qualitative Social Research.