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Guiltily indebted? How a word is linked to individual borrowing

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  • Tamara Bogatzki
  • David Stadelmann
  • Benno Torgler

Abstract

Using data from the World Values Survey, we show that individuals who speak a language in which the same word is used for both (financial) debt and (moral) guilt have a statistically significant and economically meaningful lower likelihood of borrowing money. This relationship holds even after controlling for a range of covariates, fixed effects, grammatical future tense reference, and the Germanic language family. Our results suggest that the synonymity of debt and guilt may be a hitherto overlooked aspect in explaining borrowing behaviour.

Suggested Citation

  • Tamara Bogatzki & David Stadelmann & Benno Torgler, 2025. "Guiltily indebted? How a word is linked to individual borrowing," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 32(9), pages 1269-1272, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:apeclt:v:32:y:2025:i:9:p:1269-1272
    DOI: 10.1080/13504851.2024.2302891
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