The Link Between Language and Savings

💰Countries with futureless languages have higher savings rates, while countries with futured languages have lower savings rates.

🗣️Language can influence the way we think about time and affect our behavior across time.

🌍Significant native populations of futureless language speakers tend to have higher savings rates.

🚬Futureless language speakers are less likely to engage in risky behaviors like smoking and obesity.

⏳Understanding the influence of language on behavior could help individuals make better financial decisions for the future.

How does language affect savings rates?

—Futureless language speakers are more likely to save compared to futured language speakers.

What are futureless languages?

—Futureless languages do not grammatically differentiate between the present and future, treating them as the same.

Do futureless language speakers engage in other responsible financial behaviors?

—Yes, futureless language speakers are less likely to smoke, be obese, or engage in risky financial behaviors.

Are these findings applicable to all countries and languages?

—These findings are based on comparisons of families with identical characteristics and are applicable to the specific languages studied.

How can language influence financial decision-making?

—Language influences how we think about time and can subtly shape our behavior and attitudes towards saving and investing for the future.

00:15The question of why countries with similar economies have different savings behavior has puzzled economists for a long time.

00:49New research suggests that the structure of the language we speak may be a factor in savings behavior.

01:22Countries with futureless languages, which do not grammatically differentiate between the present and future, tend to have higher savings rates.

03:00Futureless language speakers are also less likely to engage in risky behaviors like smoking and obesity.

05:56Understanding how language influences behavior could help individuals make better financial decisions for the future.