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Most people in a recent poll say the economy has them worried. But, who feels the strain from this worry more, men or women?
While most people are feeling stressed from problems in the stock market, housing costs and the economy in general, women are feeling the stress a little more intensely.
Licensed clinical social worker Wendy Christensen said, "They look for long-term planning, and so, for the market to be fluctuating so much, it makes it more difficult for them to see long-term financial security."
USA Today says 84 percent of women surveyed are stressed about the economy, compared to 75 percent of men. The survey also says the stress gives more women headaches than men.
Christensen says the way women process stress leads to more physical problems: "They could carry that through sicknesses and illnesses, or it can be emotional stress that they're carrying, whereas men can usually get their stress out a little better whether it's through aggression or working out."
As far as knowing when the stress from the volatile stock market will end, that's still up in the air because emotions are still ruling investors' decisions-making processes.
Ashworth & Empey Financial President Todd McChesney, said, "People that don't understand that the stock market is a long-term investment will try and make some decisions to keep themselves from losing more money. Well, that decision is, ‘I'm going to get out and I'm going to move to cash, or, I'm going to move to a money market, or, I'm going to a CD,' or, whatever."
McChesney says the best thing to do with your stock investments is to keep them in the market, no matter how stressful it is. "Once you move out, you've forever lost and gain that market is going to have," he said.
McChesney says a diversified stock portfolio will eventually yield returns, unlike someone who keeps all their stocks with one company, which could go under.
"Studies have shown that the average investor over the last 30 years has averaged a 4 percent return in the market while the market itself has averaged 11. That tells me that people are making emotional decisions during times of volatility," he said.
He says some stock analysts have gone on TV telling everyone to get out of the market, but McChesney says this may be the best time to buy cheap stocks for long-term investment.
E-mail: pnelson@ksl.com
