Survey Of In Study Canada Student Loan Borrowers

Author : Katrina Cherney
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (125 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Emerging in Debt written by Katrina Cherney and published by . This book was released on 2021 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Among the key concerns of researchers, policy makers and the public is skyrocketing student debt. Almost 45 million borrowers in the United States owe over $1.6 trillion in student loan debt - that is almost $600 billion more than total U.S. credit card debt. And this problem is not unique to the United States. While the total number of borrowers, aggregate debt load and average debt sizes are smaller in Canada, carrying student debt has become an increasingly ubiquitous feature of emerging adult life there as well.This dissertation examines the impact of student debt on the subjective financial well-being (SFWB) of emerging adults in the United States and Canada. SFWB consists of an individual’s perceptions and evaluations of their own financial condition. SFWB is important to human development because of its positive association with overall subjective well-being, and with mental and physical health. However, the direction and magnitude of the impact of student debt on SFWB during this critical period of the life course is not well understood. This dissertation is comprised of three independent studies. In the first two, I used longitudinal survey data to examine the relationship between student debt and SFWB in the United States. More specifically, in the first, I examined the relationship between debt status and level and SFWB, and how this relationship differed across socioeconomic groups. In the second, I examined the relationship between changes in student debt and changes in SFWB within people over time. In the third, I used focus group data to explore the impact of student debt on the SFWB and life course transitions of young adults in the Canadian context. Findings from the first two studies revealed that holding student debt and amount of debt held shaped the SFWB of emerging adults in the United States. Borrowers had significantly lower SFWB than their counterparts without student debt and, among debtors, debt amount was negatively associated with SFWB. Further, the association between student debt and SFWB was stratified by family background socioeconomic status. Additionally, while the negative association between student debt and SFWB persisted across all time periods under study, trajectories of SFWB varied in relation to changes in student debt over time. Findings from focus groups (Study 3) confirmed these results and added nuance derived from the perspectives of young adults holding and repaying student debt in Canada. While participants felt that taking on student allowed them to invest in themselves and develop financial management skills, it also caused significant financial and psychological stress. Further, there was heterogeneity in the timing and severity of this stress. Also, during the repayment period, borrowers felt that their debt obligations constrained their financial freedom and life course transitions. Finally, family financial background – including both financial resources and processes of financial socialization – shaped participants’ student debt use, experiences and perspectives. The findings of this dissertation can inform the design and implementation of practice level interventions that may both alleviate the negative and increase the positive effects of debt on SFWB. Findings can inform the targeting of policy level interventions that address the needs of vulnerable borrowers and redistribute social goods in order to maximize the mobility-generating power of post-secondary education. Finally, by addressing stratification in the impact of student debt on SFWB, this dissertation responds to the call for social work researchers, practitioners and educators to lead in the fight for social and economic justice and equity"--