Dominguez and Robin (2008, pp. 43-56) suggest two levels at which we might view money. There is the “street-level” perspective on money. This is the practical physical realm. How much should I spend on this can of soup? Dominguez and Rubin identify this as the everyday, “pedestrian” perspective of money. This perspective begins during our childhood as we are allocated an allowance and continues into the establishment of a checking account (and perhaps a savings account). It continues to mature (or become static) as we enter adulthood and have to make many daily decisions regarding the expenditure of money. Politicians speak of this as the “kitchen-table” viewpoint regarding how our economy is operating. Our “feeling” about the economy is based on this “parochial” perspective. We react against the growing price of eggs rather than against the money spent far away on the new wall being built on the Texas border or new healthcare entitlement.
Dominguez and Robin include the obtaining of a home loan and the purchase of insurance policies, stocks, bonds, IRAs, and so forth in this first level. I would have to disagree. These are no longer “kitchen table” dollars. Decisions made about these big financial matters, such as the purchase of a home (size of mortgage), establishing financial protection (insurance), and setting aside life savings (size of investments) operate at a whole different financial and emotional level than the purchasing of soup. While soup purchase operates at a proximal (“close-to-home”) level, these big financial issues operate at a distal (“far-from-home”) level. It is not only a matter of the financial investments being much greater; there is also the matter of personal control. We have something to say about the soup we purchase or the trip we make to our friend’s home. We have much less to say, and much less control, over such matters as the shifting value of the home we own or the performance of our investments in the stock market. We also can’t control the intrusive events in our life (such as illness, property damage, or loss of job) that directly impact on our financial wellbeing.
Dominguez and Robin identify the second level as “the neighborhood perspective.” This is the emotional/psychological realm. They speak of this perspective as being “nonmaterial” (unlike the first perspective). It concerns
“. . . the emotional and mental glue that holds together daily interactions with money. This is the level of our personal thoughts and feeling about money—our money style or personality. Are you impulsive? Cautious? Competitive? Generous? A show-off” A miser? A Sexist” (my husband/wife take care of all that”)? “A worrier. An Ostrich? A snob? Hopelessly helpless?”
At this neighborhood level, the authors bring in such weighty matters as one’s consideration of money as security, as power, as social acceptance, and even as evil. I would relate this level to the second perspective I identified. This emotional/psychological realm relates inevitably to the “big-ticket” decisions we must make regarding home, security, and lifesaving.
Moving on from the analysis offered by Dominquez and Robin, I would suggest that there is yet another level that each of us must consider in managing money. This level concerns the work we do to bring in money. How much does this job pay, and is there much job security? What about the healthcare benefits that I need to secure the welfare of my family? Are funds set aside for my retirement? What am I willing to give up in order to secure a good-paying job? Must I forfeit my autonomy or the pride I take in the job I am doing? Edgar Schein (1978) identifies eight career anchors that provide us with a sense of gratification in the work I do. Does this job provide not only some money in my pocket (and the pocket of my family), but also some rewards related to my preferred anchor(s)?
