Literature on the impacts of financial scarcity on cognition has demonstrated its detrimental effects in many areas related to executive functions. However, a better understanding of how financial...Show moreLiterature on the impacts of financial scarcity on cognition has demonstrated its detrimental effects in many areas related to executive functions. However, a better understanding of how financial scarcity impacts cognitive persistence in an adult sample is needed. This study investigated whether perceiving oneself in a scarcity situation impacts persistence levels when engaging in a cognitive task. It was hypothesized that the activation of financial scarcity feelings through an experimental task negatively influenced persistence levels in participants who were placed in a scarcity condition. Additionally, it was expected this effect to be stronger for participants who experienced actual financial stress, than for those who currently face no similar concerns. To test these hypotheses, two hundred and one participants engaged in an online study where financial scarcity was activated through an experimental paradigm, namely, the Household task. Persistence levels were assessed with a measure of time and endurance, the Anagram-Riddles task. The findings did not confirm the hypotheses. Although that difference in persistence levels between the groups did not reach statistical significance, the results highlight the importance of assuming the impacts of financial scarcity not only from a deficit model where negative impacts are expected but also from a strengths-based model where adaptive responses serve proximal functions in the context where they take place.Show less
