A new LIMRA study finds 42 percent of Americans said household finances caused "somewhat high" or "very high" stress levels compared to other areas of their lives. Personal health and work issues came next with each cited as a source of high stress by 29 percent of consumers.
"In an effort to gauge the opportunities for our member companies, LIMRA is exploring the topic of financial wellness in America," said Jennifer Douglas, associate research director, Development Research at LIMRA. "Our first study assessed the financial wellness of all consumers relative to each other, identified where financial stress takes its greatest toll, and measured consumer receptivity to financial education programs."
Daily stress that requires consumers' time and attention and/or consumes their thoughts affects 7 in 10 Americans in one or more common areas such as finances, health, work, relationships and day-to-day life.
One of the leading factors associated with consumer stress involves raising children. While few consumers said this is the cause of daily stress, children in the household increase the likelihood for stress in many other areas.
Work is another source of stress that correlates with stress in other areas, but, here workers readily acknowledge the source. Half of full-time workers reported high stress from issues on the job. "Four in ten employees admit that stress is a distraction at work," said Douglas. "Yet, these workers are more likely to cite workloads, supervisors, co-workers and job security as the stressors and less likely to acknowledge personal issues as a distraction."
