For most of us, owing thousands of dollars in student loans, all while [--1--] credit card debt, probably sounds like a nightmare. But for people in their early- to mid-20s, all that debt actually seems to [--2--] their self-esteem—possibly because they consider that debt an investment in their future. So says a study in the journal Social Science Research. [Rachel Dwyer, Laura McCloud and Randy Hodson, Youth debt, mastery, and self-esteem: Class-stratified effects of indebtedness on self-concept]

Researchers analyzed [--3--] national survey data on 3,000 young Americans. The questions covered student loans and credit card debt, as well as some designed to measure the respondents’ self-esteem and sense of control over their lives. Even after accounting for the fact that more self-confident teens might be willing to take out more loans in college, the researchers found that the more debt respondents had, the more [--4--] they felt. Especially young adults from low-income families, who might have been afforded opportunities beyond their means.

But the honeymoon appears to end around age 28—right around the time when college grads have been working a few years and they realize their [--5--] may have been just a tad too high. Oh, and when the bills for those student loans start showing up.
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