UK youth pessimistic about their future
UK youth pessimistic about their future
British teenagers think they are facing a bleak future, according to a recent study from Young Enterprise and Opinium Research, who surveyed over 1000 pupils aged between 14 and 18 years.
- Two thirds of British teenagers worry about getting into debt (67%)
- Over half of UK kids are anxious about getting a job in the future (56%)
- Over 1 in 10 teens think they will be financially worse off than their parents when they grow up (16%)
Children as young as 14 are already well aware of difficulties their families are in, and have noticed their parents having to cut back. Almost half of teenagers said their family was not taking as many holidays (46%), two in five reported they were going out less (40%) and over a third mentioned they were shopping less (37%). Over a third (35%) has even noticed parents cutting back on their birthday and Christmas presents. Children are also aware that their upbringing (e.g. if they are deemed rich or poor) may influence how far they get in life; with almost seven in ten (68%) thinking their upbringing will influence their chances of success.
Although they may be jaded about their financial future, children are optimistic about the age they will become financially independent. On average, children perhaps unrealisticaly believe they will stop needing help from the Bank of Mum and Dad by the tender age of 22.
Outlook on employment:
When asked their views on getting a job in the future, over half of UK children admitted they are worried about getting a job (56%). Again, this is a bigger concern to girls with almost two thirds apprehensive about it (63%) compared to 47% of boys, suggesting that girls are more cautious about their prospects. Furthermore, one in six teens predict they will be worse off than their parents when they grow up (16%) – a sign that children are more conscious of their fiscal future than parents or teachers may be aware of.
However, while teenagers believe their job prospects may be gloomy, three quarters said they would think about starting a business later in life (74%).Role models can play a major part in influencing children?s aspirations and it?s interesting to find that when asked who their top role model was, world famous entrepreneurs and businessmen Sir Lord Alan Sugar and Steve Jobs came out top for boys (both10%) while mothers were girls? greatest inspiration (16%).
Opinium Research carried out an online survey of 1,051 people aged between 14 -18yrs between 8th to15th June 2012
