More than one third of the Romanian teenagers look up to their parents for financial guidance, with the mother being the most trusted figure when it comes to shaping up their financial attitude and behavior, a survey from lender BCR showed Thursday.
The survey polled 700 high school and college students.
“Both high school and college students believe an ideal financial behavior should balance income and expenses, while also leaving room for savings. Around 36% of the polled students said their financial behavior is influenced by other family members, particularly by the mothers,” the survey noted.
Among public figures, teenagers believe Bill Gates is the most influential businessman, followed by Romanian central bank governor Mugur Isarescu and former tennis player-turned-businessman Ion Tiriac.
Donald Trump, Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg are also good financial role models, according to the polled students.
Around three quarters of the interviewed teenagers are very careful with their monthly budgets, while 65% of them use to save money for larger expenses.
However, most teens are rather pessimistic about the size of their first paycheck, the survey showed. Around half of the students expect their first job will bring them less than 1,000 lei (EUR223).