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From “good credit” to “bad debt”: Comparative reflections on the student debt experience of young professionals in Santiago, Chile, and Montreal, Canada

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  • Lorena Pérez‐Roa

Abstract

This article explores how and when student debt is represented as a problem for young people as well as the ways in which the consequences of this indebtedness are handled. This is done through a comparative reflection about the experience of indebtedness felt by several young adults who have university student loan debt in Santiago, Chile, and Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The primary results confirm that the two contexts produce two types of distinct experiences of indebtedness. The young adults in Montreal consider indebtedness to be a problem, so much so that they have internalized the discourse on individual responsibility and financial autonomy promoted by credit agencies and Quebec society. Indebted young adults in Santiago consider their indebtedness to be a problem when they observe that Chilean society is not capable of fulfilling the promise of social mobility through the acquisition of a university degree. While for Montreal debtors, the consequences are internalized and shielded by legislation, the Santiago debtors politicize their demands for a debt solution.

Suggested Citation

  • Lorena Pérez‐Roa, 2019. "From “good credit” to “bad debt”: Comparative reflections on the student debt experience of young professionals in Santiago, Chile, and Montreal, Canada," Economic Anthropology, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 6(1), pages 135-146, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:ecanth:v:6:y:2019:i:1:p:135-146
    DOI: 10.1002/sea2.12137
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