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Sensation-Seeking, Risk-Taking, and Problematic Financial Behaviors of College Students

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Abstract

College students are at especially high risk for serious financial problems due to easy availability of credit cards, rising tuition, and a declining economy. Arnett (Am Psychol 55:469–480, 2000) proposed 18–25 year olds may be considered emerging adults and are characterized by less stable financial situations than those who perceive themselves to be adults. A survey was given to 450 students at two Mississippi universities. The results showed student financial behaviors were related to age, gender, public assistance, adult status, sensation-seeking, and potential for problem gambling. This study is unique in that it investigated the relationship of emerging adult/adult status and other individual and socio-demographic variables to financial behaviors among college students, a conceptualization that has not been explored in the past.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Human Sciences, Mississippi State University, P.O. Box 9745, Mississippi State, MS, 39762, USA

    Sheri Lokken Worthy

  2. Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Grinnell College, 2515 Noyce Science Center, Grinnell, IA, 50112, USA

    Jeffrey Jonkman

  3. Department of Sociology, Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis, IN, 46202, USA

    Lynn Blinn-Pike

Authors
  1. Sheri Lokken Worthy
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  2. Jeffrey Jonkman
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  3. Lynn Blinn-Pike
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Correspondence to Sheri Lokken Worthy.

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Worthy, S.L., Jonkman, J. & Blinn-Pike, L. Sensation-Seeking, Risk-Taking, and Problematic Financial Behaviors of College Students. J Fam Econ Iss 31, 161–170 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10834-010-9183-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10834-010-9183-6

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