



Student loan debt is being linked to poor mental and psychological functioning among young adults and students.

Published in the January edition of Social Science & Medicine, lead author Katrina M. Walsemann of the University of South Carolina analyzed data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth to determine that students weighed down by loans were more likely to exhibit signs of damaged mental health — including increased levels of depression and stress.

Both “occupational trajectories” and “health inequities” were negatively impacted among students stifled by ever-growing academic debt they can’t repay. Walsemann suggests the extreme debt is causing spillover effects into young adults’ decisions to delay marriage, children or stray from their intended career path.

“We are speculating that part of the reason that these types of loans are so stressful is the fact that you cannot defer them, they follow you for the rest of your life until you pay them off,” Walsemann tells Science Daily.

The University of South Carolina study examined the link between student loan debt and psychological functioning for more than 4,600 American 25- to 31-year-olds and currently enrolled U.S. students. The researchers factored in what type of institution they were enrolled in, what degree was earned and their families’ economic backgrounds.

The researchers investigated two questions: What is the association between the cumulative amount of student loans borrowed over the course of schooling and psychological functioning when individuals are 25–31 years old? And what is the association between annual student loan borrowing and psychological functioning among currently enrolled college students?

“Cumulative student loans were significantly and inversely associated with better psychological functioning,” according to the researchers, signifying student loan debt had a negative effect on the mental health of study participants.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s latest 2014 report on household debt and credit found that the balance on all student loans, including those from private lenders, exceeded more than $1 trillion.

“Outstanding student loan balances reported on credit reports increased to $1.13 trillion (an increase of $8 billion) as of September 30, 2014, representing about $100 billion increase from one year ago,” the bank said in its latest report on household debt and credit.

According to the study, the price of higher education in the U.S. has increased by 250 percent in the past three decades when accounting for inflation—most students have to borrow money to pay for school. According to the Project on Student Debt, in 2013 seven out of 10 graduating college seniors were leaving school with student loans, which averaged $28,400.

The research adds to volumes of studies showing financial strains have measurable mental and physical effects on people from all socio-economic backgrounds. A 2013 study published in Anxiety, Coping and Stress, for instance, found that “those with greater financial strain perceived more stress, had more symptoms of depression, anxiety, and ill-health.”

The research noted certain participants who were raised in poorer families or who had already experienced significant amounts of emotional instability in their lives were more capable of coping with mental health setbacks.

“Those who are able to enroll in college despite their early-life disadvantages,” the researchers speculate, “may be in better mental health or possess personality characteristics that increase their odds of attending college, such as being future-oriented or highly motivated.”

However, even with adjustments for family wealth and childhood economic status, students with debt still reported higher levels of depression and stress across the board.

— Benjamin Fearnow