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Student Loans at the Dinner Table: Family Communication Patterns About Student Loans Before Accrual and During Repayment

Author

Listed:
  • Julie Miller

    (MIT AgeLab)

  • Samantha Brady

    (MIT AgeLab)

  • Alexa Balmuth

    (MIT AgeLab)

  • Lisa D’Ambrosio

    (MIT AgeLab)

  • Joseph Coughlin

    (MIT AgeLab)

Abstract

With student loan borrowing becoming an increasingly common experience in U.S. households, it is crucial to understand the interpersonal manifestation of education debt within family systems. This study sought to understand how accruing and repaying student loan debt for one’s own higher education relates to family dynamics and communication within families. Leveraging Family Communication Patterns Theory, this study asked: How do student loan borrowers describe loan-related family communication patterns prior to loan accrual and during the repayment period? Utilizing qualitative and quantitative data collected through a concurrent nested mixed methods study design, findings from this study profile family communication typologies leading up to, and during, student loan repayment. Study findings suggest that the ways in which families communicate about student loans prior to loan accrual and during repayment (a) relate to family financial socialization processes and (b) play at least a partial role in how they experience student loans as part of their overall family dynamics. This study proposes a model of loan-related family communication dynamics and offers implications for future scholarship and practice.

Suggested Citation

  • Julie Miller & Samantha Brady & Alexa Balmuth & Lisa D’Ambrosio & Joseph Coughlin, 2021. "Student Loans at the Dinner Table: Family Communication Patterns About Student Loans Before Accrual and During Repayment," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 42(2), pages 251-271, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jfamec:v:42:y:2021:i:2:d:10.1007_s10834-021-09759-3
    DOI: 10.1007/s10834-021-09759-3
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    References listed on IDEAS

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