What science tells us The average person’s “logical brain”, or prefrontal cortex, is fully developed at around the age of 25. The limbic system, or “feeling brain”, begins developing in the womb and is almost fully formed before the age of 10. Our children are more guided by feelings and emotions than many of us realise. When money is handled with fear, dread, anger or control, it can activate a sense of threat in the people around us. A child who repeatedly associates money with threat may carry that response into adult financial decisions, often without knowing it. This is not about blame. It is about noticing, because you cannot pass on a different relationship with money until you can see what you are currently passing on. What is in your hands? You do not need a formal conversation with your child about money values. Start by noticing what you are already saying without words. What does your face do when an unexpected bill arrives? What happens to your voice when you and your partner discuss money? What does your child hear when you talk about what other people have? These lessons are already being delivered. By adjusting your own responses, you can help your child learn something different. bahrainthismonth.com | OCTOBER 2026 COMMERCE 68 Mindful Money Matters I was speaking to an acquaintance recently and mentioned that I work in money psychology. Their immediate interest and widened eyes spoke volumes. They told me they had worked on many aspects of their life, yet money continued to bring chaos. Think about it. How much did money have to do with the last argument you had with your spouse, a meltdown your child had or your ability to navigate a difficult conversation at work? Money is the lifeblood of practical life. We all have a relationship with it, whether or not we recognise what that relationship is like. There is also a good chance your children are learning to navigate money in ways you did not expect. As with other aspects of family life, you can shape how that process feels for them. To do that, you need to understand the attitudes towards money that guide your household and how you might adjust them. Money is practical and mathematical. Or is it? When we think logically, money seems like a practical issue. In arithmetic, two plus two always equals four. So $10 spent is $10 spent. Fair enough. But that $10 gets us something and the feeling we experience when we get it has an intangible value. It might bring happiness, satisfaction or guilt. What we say and what we do are often out of sync. Children are exquisitely sensitive to emotional subtext. They hear what you say, but Pria Masson combines over 20 years in finance with a master’s degree in Psychology and Neuroscience of Mental Health from King’s College London. She writes about money, mindset and the patterns that shape financial wellbeing. The Many Values of Money they feel what you mean. A parent who says: “Money is not everything,” while being visibly anxious about every expense is teaching their child that money is frightening. Actions, reactions and silences around money are all signals a child continuously reads and absorbs. Is money driven by values? If we have feelings about money, it is not too farfetched to say that money brings out our values. Notice how the meaning changes depending on which of these sentences you use: “I want my children to understand the value of money.” “I want my children to know how to manage money.” “I want my children to be able to make money grow.” Each reflects a different relationship with money. Whichever feels most natural to you is likely to influence your children. Money is not inherently frightening, shameful, exciting or dangerous. It is neutral. What gives it emotional weight is the value system of the people who handle it. Those values are not universal or absolute. They are inherited, cultural and personal. What feels like common sense to one family may be completely foreign to another. The questions worth asking are: What does money mean in this household? Is that meaning serving anyone well?
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