2nd opinions piece

Normal Opinions piece: Allowances

Everyone at some point in their life has to do chores. Whether these be around the house, outside, or for another family member, you have to finish these tasks. Some parents decide to reward their kids with an allowance for doing their chores and some do not.  I do not think that parents should give their kids allowances.

When a parent or any adult tells you to go do the dishes, or take out the trash, it is expected that you do it. When things are expected of you, you shouldn't get rewarded for doing them. Being rewarded for something that is expected gives kids the idea that they should be rewarded for everything. This is not a good mentality to have. Kids should understand that some things just need to be done and are part of life.

Furthermore, when you hand kids money, they immediately want to spend it. They want to buy candy or toys but none of them think about saving the money they earned. These spending habits causes bad habits in the future. According to Time magazine, only 1% of kids who receive an allowance save any of it. Therefore those who were, or still are given an allowance tend to spend there money more freely and on whatever they want at that time. Those who never had an allowance tend to be cautious with there money and save it. This leads to a better future because you can't blow all of your money when you get older and still hope to be successful in life.

One final argument against allowance is that it causes kids to miss the importance of things. Blogging for change, a financial blog says that when parents pay their kids for their grades or chores, the kids only do it for the money. Wouldn't it be better if kids were motivated to make good grades because they got the satisfaction of knowledge? Or that they did their chores, not because they got money, but because they were able to feel good about helping someone? I think these qualities would lead to a more fruitful future and happier life.

However, parents who do give their kids allowances have some arguments of their own. According to a parent blog, most parents think that giving their kids an allowance is the only way to get them to do something. This should not be the case. Parents need to be teaching their kids that they need to do what they are asked. This allows for a better future since people have to listen and cooperate with those around them and most likely will not be rewarded for doing so.

Another reason parents give allowances is they think it teaches their kids budgeting. They think that making their kids work for the money and then letting them see what happens when they spend it will make for a more successful future but it usually doesn't. A professor of finance at SUNY Buffalo had studied kids with allowances for over 50 years and noted that those who got allowances did the worst on financial literacy tests. This being because these kids "think far less about money in general."

If parents really can't get their kids to do chores, I still don't believe an allowance is the answer. Parents could try making chores more fun by doing it with their kid or making a competition out of it. This way kids get to have fun with their family while still getting the work done.

Furthermore, instead of rewarding kids with real money, parents could give them little coupons for fun activities such as a trip to the zoo or a movie night. This way kids learn that getting work done leads to time to have fun with their family or when they get older their friends.

So overall, allowances provide kids with bad spending habits, a bad mentality towards money and how it should be spent, and causes them to miss out on important aspects of life. Due to this, I do not think that parents should give their kids allowances.


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