Literature Review #3: "Relationships between College Students' Credit Card Debt, Undesirable Academic Behaviors and Cognitions, and Academic Performance" by Eileen A. Hogan et al.

Retrieved from: https://static01.nyt.com/images/2014/05/25/business/25-APPLIED/25-APPLIED-blog427.jpg

Hogan, Eileen A., Sarah K. Bryant, and Leslie E. Overymyer-Day. "Relationships Between College Students' Credit Card Debt, Undesirable Academic Behaviors And Cognitions, And Academic Performance." College Student Journal 47.1 (2013): 102-112. ERIC. 

Summary

The cost of higher education is continuing to rise as public funding is cut and the need for private funding increases. This condition is proving to be an economic drawback because student debt from loans rise in hand with tuition inflation. The effect that debt can have on one's wellbeing can last for quite a long time. Along with loan debt, credit card debt is an increasing problem for undergraduates. A 2004 study by Sallie Mae demonstrated that 84% of students carried at least one credit card, 17% paid off their cards each month, almost one-third of students put tuition on their card, and 92% charge their cards with direct education expenses (103). This article is a study done by Eileen A. Hogan et al. that gives insight into the relationships between student debt, academic behaviors and cognitions, and academic performance. It explores relationships between debt, cognition, and academics and does not attempt to examine possible causal factors of accumulation of debt. However, other research highly suggests that low self-control may be the most influential factor in predicting behaviors that lead to accumulation of credit debt. 

The research that is presented was conducted in a four-year public university within both upper and lower division courses. The sample was created with the intention of accurately representing the average population of university students. After giving consent, 388 students completed a survey that captured demographic information and information regarding awareness of personal credit cards. Furthermore, the survey asked for information on experienced levels of anxiety, coping behaviors involved, academic-related behaviors, and perceived impact of each of these on academic success. A 7 point Likert scale was used to capture the degree of agreement with each survey item. 

Regarding credit card use, the study found that 73% of students using cards knew about their credit but only 41% knew their current balance. Additionally, it is suggested that the higher the credit balance, the more hours a student tends to work, the more they spend on impulse, and the more that undesirable academic behaviors and cognitions are felt. The more a student is late on payments to their card and the more the student works, the more they feel ridden with undesirable academic behaviors and spending. Students on this side of the spectrum report feeling more anxiety. Overall, the study suggests that financial troubles relate to how a student performs and learns. Financial strain also relates to the amount of time and energy a student allocates in college.

About the Authors

Eileen A. Hogan, Ph.D., served as Dean and Professor Emerita from the College of Business at Kutztown University of Pennsylvania. She received her degree in Organizational Behavior from the University of California at Berkeley and has published many works related to the assurance of learning efforts and assessment of business programs. 

Sarah K. Bryant, Ph.D., is a Professor of Finance in the College of Business at Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania. She received a MBA in International Finance and Intermediate Finance at Loyola College and Indiana University of Pennsylvania respectively. From the University of South Carolina, she received her Ph.D. that was of concentration in Economics and a B.S. in Economics and Business. She has many publications in her related fields and has taught many financial and economics courses.

Leslie E. Overymyer-Day, Ph.D., was a Senior Research Analyst and Advisor for the National Academy of Public Administration. She also can be credited with work in Booz Allen Hamilton, an leading American management and technology consulting firm.

Key Terms & Concepts

Credit card use -   an increasing problem for undergraduates in the U.S.; relationship to undesirable academic behaviors and cognitons and academic performance are established (102)
Debt & stress - student debt level is directly related to their self-assessed financial stress level (104)
Credit card balance - positive relationship with hours working, undesirable academics, and shopping (109)
Financial delinquency - positively related to undesirable academics and shopping (109)
Hours studying - negative relationship to drinking and to shopping (109)
Hours working - positively related to undesirable academics (109)
Undesirable academics - positively related to felt anxiety, drinking, and shopping, and negatively to current GPA (109)
Perceived effect of work on studying -  students who owe more credit card debt, those who feel in nancial trouble, who work more, and who exhibit more undesirable academic behaviors feel more strongly that work contributes to less time and energy for studying; these students also report more anxiety (110) 

Quotes

"When students accumulate debt to a problematic level, they can respond in two ways: increasing income by getting jobs, working more hours, or borrowing; and/or engaging in various forms of dysfunctional behaviors such as drinking. Either response could negatively impact study and attendance behaviors and, eventually, grade point average and learning, time in college, and dropping or “stopping” out of college" (103). 

"In this vein, a study by Adams and Moore (2007) found a significant relationship between students’ credit card debt and students’ high-risk health behaviors, such as drinking and driving, use of amphetamines, depression, and high BMI" (104).

"Students might also respond to debt through various dysfunctional behaviors, such as... Drinking, drugs, depression, or eating. These coping behaviors also may be negatively linked to students’ academic behaviors such as studying and attending classes, e.g. hangovers or lack of sleep might result in missing classes. Coping behaviors may also involve spending more money, which increases financial difficulty" (104). 

"Students get into financial difficulty for various reasons, some of which have been studied... Once they get into financial trouble they may experience anxiety, which may lead to inappropriate behaviors to alleviate stress such as drinking or shopping inappropriately. These, in turn, may increase credit card balances and heighten anxiety" (110).

Value

This study is valuable to my line of research because although credit card debt is not equatable to loan debt, it demonstrates some of the relationships that any debt can have on psychological wellbeing and academic success. It is important for the sake of my own research to note here that debt and stress maintain a relationship regardless of any causal factors. It is difficult to claim that one causes the other, but the relationship exists and can be indicative if certain behaviors and outcomes. This point will help me demonstrate that the effects of privatization (financial burden and academic pressure) indirectly affect both mental health and academic success. Accordingly, I do not intend to distinguish any causal factors because everything variates on a complex spectrum that current research can not reasonably quantify. Debt can affect stress levels experienced by students and influence them to respond in ways that only further implicate mental health and academic success, such as taking part in unhealthy eating habits or binge drinking. Such an environment will surely exacerbate the development of psychological disorders and impairments in college students.