Study shows that teenagers have less trouble spending cash

Spending money hurts, but less so when you're a teenager and have cash in your wallet. This is the conclusion of De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) after research. According to the central bank, how annoying it is to spend money depends, among other things, on the person's age and the payment method.

The study, published by the Economic magazine Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, showed that adults are most annoyed when they have to spend cash. Teenagers have the least trouble with spending cash.

The research, which included around 2,500 people, did not find an explanation for the ease with which young people spend cash. "We do not know exactly why because we were not able to ask this to the young people who participated in the research, but we do have strong suspicions that it is the fact that they have grown up with bank cards and screens that plays a role," said DNB researchers Marie-Claire Broekhoff and Carin van der Cruijsen.

The bank balance on their app tells young people more about how much money they have than what is in their pocket, they think. "When they pay cash, nothing changes to the balance on their screen, making the expenditure less painful."

Broekhoff and Van der Cruijsen also point to the concept of 'girlmath,' or justifying the expenditure. According to them, this has been a much-discussed topic on the video app TikTok, popular among young people, for almost a year.

When it comes to adults, it is the exact opposite. For them, it is easier to pay by phone. They feel more when they spend cash and coins. "The fact that spending cash hurts them more is quite logical. It was the payment method that they used as a kid."

More factors play a role in how someone experiences a payment. For example, people who have difficulty making ends meet generally have more difficulty spending money than others. According to the research, couples who split the bills experience slightly less pain when paying.

The researchers also point out that the concept of payment pain has a negative connotation but is actually something positive. "If you experience pain when spending money, you make more of an effort to limit your spending. If that pain is absent, there is no brake on your spending, which can get some people into trouble."