Student Debt: Perceptions and Impact on College Students

Posted: October 10th, 2024

Student Debt: Perceptions and Impact on College Students

[Thesis statement] This paper examines the construction of an online survey designed to investigate college students’ perceptions of student debt and its impact on their academic and personal lives. The survey aims to gather data on students’ understanding of debt, financial literacy, and the perceived long-term consequences of educational loans.

Research Background

Student debt has become a pressing issue in higher education, with potential long-lasting effects on graduates’ financial well-being and career choices. According to Looney and Yannelis (2019), the total student loan debt in the United States exceeded $1.5 trillion in 2018, with the average borrower owing over $30,000. This staggering figure has raised concerns about the sustainability of the current higher education financing model and its impact on students’ lives.

Recent studies have highlighted the multifaceted nature of student debt’s impact. For instance, Montalto et al. (2019) found that financial stress, often related to student loans, negatively affects academic performance and mental health among college students. Additionally, Velez et al. (2019) reported that student debt influences career choices, with many graduates opting for higher-paying jobs rather than pursuing careers aligned with their passions or in public service.

Given these findings, it is crucial to understand how current college students perceive student debt and its potential impact on their future. This survey aims to contribute to this understanding by exploring students’ attitudes, knowledge, and concerns regarding educational loans.

Survey Construction

The survey was created using Google Forms, a free and user-friendly online survey platform. It consists of 8 items, including both closed-ended and open-ended questions, designed to gather comprehensive data on students’ perceptions of student debt. The survey can be accessed at the following link: Student Debt Survey.

The survey items were carefully crafted to avoid common pitfalls in questionnaire design, as outlined by Beretta (2014) and the Pew Research Center (n.d.). Particular attention was paid to ensuring clarity, avoiding double-barreled questions, and minimizing social desirability bias. The survey includes:

Two categorical items to gather basic demographic information (year in college and field of study).
Three ordinal items using Likert scales to measure attitudes towards student debt and financial literacy.
Two open-ended items to allow for more detailed responses about personal experiences and concerns.
One nominal item to assess students’ preferred sources of financial information.
The survey begins with a brief introduction explaining its purpose and ensuring confidentiality. Demographic questions are placed at the end, as recommended by the Pew Research Center (n.d.), to avoid potential bias in earlier responses.

Lessons Learned and Future Steps

Constructing this survey provided valuable insights into the complexities of questionnaire design. One key learning was the importance of question wording in eliciting accurate and unbiased responses. For example, when asking about the impact of student debt on career choices, care was taken to use neutral language that didn’t lead respondents towards a particular answer.

Another important lesson was the need to balance comprehensiveness with brevity. While there were many aspects of student debt that could be explored, limiting the survey to 8 items helped ensure that respondents would be more likely to complete it fully and thoughtfully.

To gather pilot data, this survey could be submitted to a diverse group of undergraduate students at a mid-sized public university. This initial sample would ideally include students from various academic years and fields of study to provide a broad perspective on the issue of student debt. The pilot data would be invaluable in refining the survey items and identifying any unforeseen issues in question interpretation or response patterns.

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References

Beretta, R. (2014). Top ten common problems in designing effective survey questions. Evidence Based Nursing, 17(1), 6-7.

Looney, A., & Yannelis, C. (2019). How useful are default rates? Borrowers with large balances and student loan repayment. Economics of Education Review, 71, 135-145.

Montalto, C. P., Phillips, E. L., McDaniel, A., & Baker, A. R. (2019). College student financial wellness: Student loans and beyond. Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 40(1), 3-21.

Pew Research Center. (n.d.). Questionnaire design. https://www.pewresearch.org/our-methods/u-s-surveys/questionnaire-design/

Velez, E. D., Bentz, A., & Arbeit, C. A. (2019). Working before, during, and after beginning at a public 4-year institution: Labor market experiences of community college transfer students. Journal of Student Financial Aid, 48(3), 1.

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In this lab, you will be constructing an online survey.

To consider topics for your surveys:
First, read closely through the PSY 320: Online Survey Topics Download PSY 320: Online Survey Topics handout.
Choose one research question from one of the survey topics listed.
b. Find, read, and summarize previously published psychological science on the questions you selected.

First, for the research question you’ve selected, search an Article Database (PsyArticles, Google Scholar, EBSCO, etc) for relevant scientific articles
Remember you can also find related articles by examining the “Cited By” tool and by examining an article’s reference list.
Second, identify three scientific articles that are most relevant
c. To become more informed about writing survey items:

First, read Beretta’s (2014) article, “Top Ten Common Problems in Designing Effective Survey QuestionsLinks to an external site..” Make sure you understand all ten problems Beretta describes – and you know how to avoid all ten problems.
Second, read Pew Research Center’s (no date) article, “Questionnaire DesignLinks to an external site..” Make sure you understand
open- versus closed-ended questions (the latter are what Science Buddies refers to as ‘structured questions’);
the importance of asking questions that are clear and well-specified;
what double-barreled questions and double-negatives are (and how to avoid them);
what acquiescence bias and social desirability bias are (and how to avoid them);
factors to consider in ordering your questions; and
the importance of placing demographic items last.
Third, to appreciate the power of wording, look at Britain Elects’ (2017) pair of tweetsLinks to an external site..
Fifth, read Harvard University’s Program on Survey Research (2007) “Tip Sheet on Question WordingLinks to an external site..” Make sure you understand
how to avoid technical jargon, vague or imprecise terms;
how to avoid double-barreled questions (again!);
how to avoid leading, emotional, or evocative language; and
how to use ordinal scales, reference frames, and unique answer choices that cover all response options.
Sixth, read Peters’ (no date) article, “How to Design a SurveyLinks to an external site..” Make sure you understand the differences between
categorical (also known as nominal) and
ordinal survey items (and survey responses).
d. Now it’s time to apply everything you’ve learned about writing survey items and write the items for your survey.

For your survey, you must write no fewer than 5 and no more than 10 items.
For your survey, you must include at least one and no more than two open-ended items (which count toward your total 5 to 10 total items per survey).
For your survey, you must include
at least one categorical/nominal survey item and
at least one ordinal survey item.
For your survey, if you include demographic items, you must place them at the end (unless there’s a good reason to place them earlier), and your demographic items count toward your total 5 to 10 total items of your survey.
e. Explore and then select one of the following (free) online survey platforms:

SurveyMonkeyLinks to an external site.
QualtricsLinks to an external site.
Google FormsLinks to an external site.
LimeSurveyLinks to an external site. or
AlchemerLinks to an external site. (formerly named SurveyGizmo).
Using the online survey platform you’ve selected, create your survey. For the title of your survey, use your research topic (e.g., Multi-Tasking While Studying; Student Debt; Texting while Driving; Food Speed versus Food Quality).

Write up and submit a brief APA format report in which you do all of the following:
Provide a link to your survey (using the title of your survey for the words that are linked).
Write at least 200 words about what you learned about constructing your survey, including who you could submit this survey to in order to gather pilot data