8
votes
A high income is a badge of success in many countries, but in Sweden a deep-rooted cultural code called Jantelagen stops many from talking about it
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- Title
- Jantelagen: Why Swedes won't talk about wealth
- Authors
- Maddy Savage
- Word count
- 1773 words
Is there a developed Western European country where it isn't considered crass to boast about ones wealth? I see nothing remarkable here at all.
It's something we need to talk about though. By keeping one's wealth (and to a much greater degree, salary) hidden, it makes it harder for other people to know if they are being paid less than they should be and makes it much easier for higher ups (both in a business and socially) to keep more money for themselves.
Obviously there's a difference between talking about it and boasting about it, but the point needs to be made regardless.
In the older generation in the UK, maybe it is still seen as crass. But I feel my own demographic (mid thirties for reference) have never seen an issue with talking about our income levels. I see this article coming across more from the viewpoint of income discussion rather than vulgar bragging rights.
I can't say that matches my experience (also UK, and in the same age bracket) - while I can infer a very rough idea of what my friends make their jobs and lifestyles, it's really not something I see people comfortably talking about directly; doubly so if there's a large disparity within the group, especially for the people on the high end of that disparity.
I actually try to make a conscious effort to be a bit more open about money (mainly because I think hiding it just helps employers to undervalue us all) and even then I don't think anyone I know knows my actual income. In fact, a lot of what the article said about Sweden resonates quite closely with what I've seen here in the UK.
Having lived in Sweden for a while now, I've really enjoyed seeing first hand many of the similarities we often seem to share as people.
I'm in my mid thirties in the US, and I don't know what any of my friends make, besides a vague idea based on their job and lifestyle. I've told a very close friend what I make (We work in the same industry doing extremely similar jobs and have worked for the same company a few times), but that's about it. It would absolutely seem crass and obnoxious to tell everyone what you make in my circles.
It mostly depends on your social group. I know what all my friends make and they know what I make. There’s a huge difference between discussing salary/ making sure your friends don’t undervalue themselves and bragging about how much you make.
Exactly. And I think that what the article posted is trying to highlight is how Swede's culturally often conflate the two sentiments of civilised discussion and obnoxious bragging as the same thing.
I guess a lot of it boils down to the type of relationship groups and the dynamics in said groups where these conversations happen, and the personality types involved. What I have found here in Sweden is that whereas no-one ever talks about their salaries, there is often in-depth discussion on the amount we pay for our homes around the dinner table. Definitely lots of factors at play with these topics of money in general in different cultures and groups.
I'm surprised that this article made no mention of Sweden's (along with Norway and Finland) system to request tax information (including taxable income) on other citizens. It could be less important than I think it would be, but it seems relevant when talking about sharing income information.
And that taps into another cultural facet often seen in the Nordics, an overriding desire to be seen as transparent and open.
Which seems a bit contradictory to the reluctance to interviewing the journalists encountered. It could be that they don't feel a need to share information that the journalists could easily get themselves (and in a way that creates a record of them doing so). Maybe being able to access tax information makes people more aware of the consequences of sharing that information. I don't know.