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Credit card attitudes and behaviors of college students
College Student Journal, Sept, 2003 by So-Hyun Joo, John E. Grable, Dorothy C. Bagwell
As recommended in the college student credit card literature, parents' credit use was used as a family background measure. Students were asked to answer the following question using choices ranging from never (1) to always (4): "Did your parents use credit cards when you were young?" About half (45.9%) of the students said their parents used credit cards always or usually when they were young, while the remainder said sometimes or never. Parents' credit use and abuse was also measured. Those who answered that their parents had credit-related problems were assigned 1, otherwise 0. Slightly more than 28% of the students answered that their parents had at least one credit-related problem. One credit related variable (i.e., credit card ownership) was included as a background factor. Those who held credit card(s) were coded 1, otherwise 0.
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Two psychological factors were included in the analyses: Money ethic and locus of control. A money ethic scale was adapted from Tang (1995). The scale included 12 items. Each item was measured with a 4-point Likert-type scale, ranging from strongly agree (4) to strongly disagree (1). Examples of money ethic items include: (a) money is important, (b) money is evil, (c) money makes people respect me in the community, and (d) money can give me the opportunity to be what I want to be. Some items were reverse coded to represent a homogeneous direction. Higher scores were interpreted to mean that the respondent valued money and its attributes to a greater extent than those with lower scores on the measure. Possible scores ranged from 12 to 48. The mean score for respondents was 32.68. The reliability coefficient of the index was .7461.
A total of 14 questions measuring locus of control were adopted from Levenson (1973). Locus of control items were also measured with a 4-point Likert-type scale, with 1 representing strongly disagree and 4 indicating strongly agree. Examples of locus of control scale items include: (a) I am usually able to protect my personal interests; (b) when I get what I want, it's usually because I'm lucky; (c) to a great extent my life is controlled by accidental happenings; and (d) when I make plans, I am almost certain to make them work. Some items were reverse coded. Higher scores represented an external locus of control, suggesting that these individuals felt that they had less control over their lives than others. Possible scores ranged from 14 to 56, with a mean score of 41.87. The reliability of the scale was .7040. Table 2 summarizes the measurement of the variables in this study. (see table 2)
Analysis
Descriptive analyses were performed to examine the demographic characteristics and credit card use behaviors of the sample respondents. A least squares multiple regression was conducted to examine the factors associated with credit attitudes. A correlation matrix was developed and examined to diagnose the possibility of multicollinearity between and among the variables. Potential multicollinearity issues were further examined with SPSS collinearity diagnosis techniques using tolerance, VIF, and eigenvalues as suggested by Hair, Anderson, Tatham, and Black (1995). Because of the high correlation between age and marital status, and the resulting possible collinearity problem, marital status was excluded in the final regression analysis.
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Most Popular Articles in Reference
- The importance of understanding organizational culture
- Credit card attitudes and behaviors of college students
- What factors attract foreign direct investment?
- Libraries Need Relationship Marketing - mutual interest marketing concept, ...
- How to set performance goals: employee reviews are more than annual critiques
- More »