The Consumer Life Cycle
You will read the following passage in your MoneySKILL lesson,
"The amount of money we will make depends on the type of work we choose to do, the amount of educatio we need to do this work, and to some extent where in the United States (or the world) we choose to work. In addition, over our lifetimes, the total income that comes into our household every year is also very dependent on our stage of life. For example, married couples with both spouses working (which is common in the early years of a marriage) usually make more than single individuals and also make more than married couples with only one working spouse. As another example, retired people tend to make less than people with the same skills who are still working. These changes in income are due to the changing stage of the life cycle."
Below are the six basic stages of the consumer life cycle. Please continue to read the passage from your MoneySKILL lesson.
"Alpha - First stage, consisting of young single, childless persons who are financially independent from their parents. High school students are usually pre-alphas.
Bravo - The second stage of the life cycle, for most people. Individual is married, but still childless. Most Americans do marry, although not all stay married to the same person. According to the 2000 census, about 86 percent of American women had been married at least once by their 45th birthday. The age of the first marriage is increasing rapidly. In, 1986, just 26.9 percent of women had not married by age 30. In 2009, this figure had climbed to 46.8 percent.
Charlie - The third stage begins with the birth of the first child and continues until the youngest child is of school age. The creation of this as a separate stage is due to the fact that many parents of pre-school children choose not to work full time. Those who do work generally have high child care expenses, making it difficult to save money. In 2007, a little less than 40 percent of working married women with children under the age o f6 did not work in the paid labor force.
Delta - The fourth life cycle stage is the Delta stage in which there are dependent children who are no longer of preschool age. With no children at home during the day, and college expenses on the horizon, most families with two adults have both working full time. In 2007, the proportion of married women with children ages 6 to 17 years who worked was nearly 80 percent.
Echo - When the last child has finished his or her schooling and is no longer dependent on the parents, the Echo stage begins. This is the pre-retirement or "empty nest" stage. For those individuals without children, the Echo stage begins about 10 years before retirement.
Foxtrot - The Foxtrot stage begins when people retire and end at the time of their death. "
"Not everyone goes through each of the "traditional" life cycles just described. What many people think of as traditional family with mother and father living together with their biological children under age 18-makes up less than 20 percent of American households. In 2010, for the first time, married couples made up less than half of all American households. There are many reasons for a decline in the "traditional" family. For example, more women have the education and job skills needed to support themselves and their children, making it possible for them to leave an unhappy marriage. People also are choosing to marry later with nearly half of all American women still unmarried by age 30. "
Think about the above life cycles. Financially, where are most people in each stage? Since the above traditional life cycles have shifted over the last 30-40 years, what financial impacts are we seeing. For example, the average age of a mother when she gave birth to her first child was 25 in 2007, an increase from 21.4 in 1970. The increase in the number of working years until the birth of the first child allows individuals and childless couples to put aside more money than ever before. This also allows for time to continue education. Over the past half-century, "labor force participation rates of women" has increased relative to those of men. What factors have influenced this increased? Why are more mothers working while their children are young? What benefits and disadvantes does having both parents working have? Does your financial habits in one stage effect the next stage?
Directions
Please describe to me your thoughts of the questions asked above. Responses should be detailed, grammatically correct, and a minimum of 150 words. Anything less will not be graded. Type your response in Microsoft Word and copy & paste to the response box below. You don't have to answer each question, but instead describe your thoughts in general about the financial matters of the life cycles and the changes.
"The amount of money we will make depends on the type of work we choose to do, the amount of educatio we need to do this work, and to some extent where in the United States (or the world) we choose to work. In addition, over our lifetimes, the total income that comes into our household every year is also very dependent on our stage of life. For example, married couples with both spouses working (which is common in the early years of a marriage) usually make more than single individuals and also make more than married couples with only one working spouse. As another example, retired people tend to make less than people with the same skills who are still working. These changes in income are due to the changing stage of the life cycle."
Below are the six basic stages of the consumer life cycle. Please continue to read the passage from your MoneySKILL lesson.
"Alpha - First stage, consisting of young single, childless persons who are financially independent from their parents. High school students are usually pre-alphas.
Bravo - The second stage of the life cycle, for most people. Individual is married, but still childless. Most Americans do marry, although not all stay married to the same person. According to the 2000 census, about 86 percent of American women had been married at least once by their 45th birthday. The age of the first marriage is increasing rapidly. In, 1986, just 26.9 percent of women had not married by age 30. In 2009, this figure had climbed to 46.8 percent.
Charlie - The third stage begins with the birth of the first child and continues until the youngest child is of school age. The creation of this as a separate stage is due to the fact that many parents of pre-school children choose not to work full time. Those who do work generally have high child care expenses, making it difficult to save money. In 2007, a little less than 40 percent of working married women with children under the age o f6 did not work in the paid labor force.
Delta - The fourth life cycle stage is the Delta stage in which there are dependent children who are no longer of preschool age. With no children at home during the day, and college expenses on the horizon, most families with two adults have both working full time. In 2007, the proportion of married women with children ages 6 to 17 years who worked was nearly 80 percent.
Echo - When the last child has finished his or her schooling and is no longer dependent on the parents, the Echo stage begins. This is the pre-retirement or "empty nest" stage. For those individuals without children, the Echo stage begins about 10 years before retirement.
Foxtrot - The Foxtrot stage begins when people retire and end at the time of their death. "
"Not everyone goes through each of the "traditional" life cycles just described. What many people think of as traditional family with mother and father living together with their biological children under age 18-makes up less than 20 percent of American households. In 2010, for the first time, married couples made up less than half of all American households. There are many reasons for a decline in the "traditional" family. For example, more women have the education and job skills needed to support themselves and their children, making it possible for them to leave an unhappy marriage. People also are choosing to marry later with nearly half of all American women still unmarried by age 30. "
Think about the above life cycles. Financially, where are most people in each stage? Since the above traditional life cycles have shifted over the last 30-40 years, what financial impacts are we seeing. For example, the average age of a mother when she gave birth to her first child was 25 in 2007, an increase from 21.4 in 1970. The increase in the number of working years until the birth of the first child allows individuals and childless couples to put aside more money than ever before. This also allows for time to continue education. Over the past half-century, "labor force participation rates of women" has increased relative to those of men. What factors have influenced this increased? Why are more mothers working while their children are young? What benefits and disadvantes does having both parents working have? Does your financial habits in one stage effect the next stage?
Directions
Please describe to me your thoughts of the questions asked above. Responses should be detailed, grammatically correct, and a minimum of 150 words. Anything less will not be graded. Type your response in Microsoft Word and copy & paste to the response box below. You don't have to answer each question, but instead describe your thoughts in general about the financial matters of the life cycles and the changes.