Teenagers experiencing financial difficulties in their households were at a greater risk of poverty and unemployment as adults, according to a survey undertaken by the Central Statistics Office (CSO).
Unemployment, low educational standards among parents, broken relationships and large families also contributed to a higher risk of poverty in later life.
Almost 27 per cent of people aged between 25 and 65, who had experienced financial difficulties "most of the time or often" as teenagers, were at risk of poverty as adults. The rate was 11.1 per cent for those who had never experienced financial difficulties.
The survey was carried out in 2005, as part of an EU-wide exercise. The CSO points out the reference period spanned 40 years, from the early 1950s to the early 1990s.
Over the years, it adds, Irish society underwent major economic and social changes,particularly evident when comparing the 25-34 age group with the 50-65 group.
The survey showed almost one-third, 32.8 per cent, of respondents who were unemployed had experienced financial difficulties as teenagers, compared to just 16 per cent who had work.
Teenagers experiencing financial difficulties also suffered when it came to education, with 42 per cent having primary education or below. Just 11 per cent of those who had a third-level degree or higher had experienced similar financial difficulties. Over half the respondents with a third-level degree had never experienced financial difficulty.
The survey revealed living conditions as an influence. Almost one-quarter, 23. 7 per cent, of people in the 25-65 age group who did not live with both parents as teenagers were at risk of poverty, compared to 15. 3 per cent of those who lived with both parents.
Family size was also a factor. Some 23 per cent aged 25 to 65 who lived with seven or more siblings as teenagers were at risk of poverty, compared to 14.6 per cent of those who had lived with fewer than three.
Twenty-eight per cent of teenagers living with unemployed parents were at risk of poverty, compared to 16.3 per cent where one parent worked. The risk was 10. 8 per cent in households where both parents worked.
Almost 62 per cent of respondents, where a parent had a third-level degree or more, were in highly skilled, non-manual occupations, compared to 23.6 per cent where the highest level of education of one or both parents was at primary level or below.
More than two-thirds, 67.9 per cent, who lived with parents with a third-level degree, never experienced financial difficulty as teenagers, while the figure was 27 .3 per cent for households where one parent or both had received a primary education or lower.
