Out of the frying pan into the fire: Quantitative investigation into how UK working adults manage consumer credit from crisis to crisis (2006 to 2022)

背景该博士论文探讨了个人，地理和时间背景如何构成英国境内财务困境的主观和客观生活体验，重点是18至39岁的成年人。英国的年轻人比以往任何一代人都更年轻地借贷。消费信贷是一种相对现代的现象，家庭越来越多地使用消费信贷，2019年家庭债务总额占收入的127%。此外，在过去十年中，消费信贷的增长超过了GDP（FCA，2020）。在2006年至2018年期间，博士论文调查了为什么超过十分之一（13.5%）的18至39岁的人报告面临某种形式的财务困境，高于整体成年人口（9.8%）。年轻人的财务状况尤其重要，因为他们正在进入成年期，这是人生历程中的一个阶段，与前几代人的经历相比，这一阶段的定义是应对新的责任，并且越来越复杂和非线性（Furlong等人，2018：Arnett，2004）.借贷是不可避免的，因为许多类型的个人借贷都与生活愿望有关，例如完成教育和住房独立（Houle，2014）。当财务义务感到无法管理时，债务就会成为问题，并可能损害一个人的健康（Sweet，2018）。研究问题，数据和方法。本论文的问题是，在多大程度上进行消费信贷加强和复制现有的经济不平等在年轻的时候？个人背景，由个人的个人情况、时间段和居住地类型定义。为了回答这个问题，论文采用了定量方法，包括描述性统计，回归建模和聚类分析，使用独特的地理编码纵向微观数据-财富和资产调查（n = 250k; ONS，2021）-涵盖英格兰，威尔士和苏格兰从2006年到2018年。调查结果。总体而言，有证据表明，面临消费信贷管理困难的成年人不一定生活在最贫困的地区。相反，越来越多的人发现，生活在"中等"社区的消费者信贷管理面临挑战。结果提供的证据表明，一个人居住的地方的类型与他们承担个人借款类别的可能性有关;某些类别，但不是全部，个人借款与年轻人拥有房屋的时间有关;某些消费信贷消费模式容易出现问题。因此，本论文支持未来的研究，以考虑个人背景的重要性，在评估个人的个人财务状况，特别是年轻人，并强调那些谁发现管理消费信贷问题，可以被忽视，因为他们住在所谓的“平均”邻里。总的来说，这篇博士论文发现，消费信贷仍然是一种灵丹妙药，主要是为工作家庭抵御金融低迷。该奖学金计划推进并在顶级期刊上发表关于英国工作家庭财务现实和相对贫困现代概念的研究;向世界领先的就业研究专家学习;在一个项目下整合和交叉验证两个安全访问项目;将时间范围从12年延长到16年，包括2020年的Covid-19危机;发展网络，并传播研究到英国和国际上的广泛受众;实践嵌入研究的影响;发展关键的沟通和协作技能;并建立信心，以应用未来的大型资助赠款。这些组成部分和获得的经验为强大的研究议程和丰富而充实的学术生涯铺平了道路。

Background. The doctoral thesis explored how individual, geographical and temporal context frames the subjective and objective lived experience of financial distress within the UK, with a focus on 18- to 39-years old adults. Young adults in the UK are borrowing more credit and doing so younger than any previous generation. Consumer credit, a relatively modern phenomenon, is increasingly utilised by households, with overall household debt sitting at 127% of income in 2019. Moreover, the growth of consumer credit has outpaced GDP over the past decade (FCA, 2020). Between 2006 and 2018, the PhD thesis investigated why more than one in ten (13.5%) 18- to 39-year-olds reported facing some form of financial distress, higher than the overall adult population (9.8%). Young adults' finances are especially important as they are entering adulthood, a phase of the life course defined with coping with new responsibility and is increasingly complex and non-linear in comparison with the experiences of previous generations (Furlong et al., 2018: Arnett, 2004). Borrowing can feel inevitable as many types of personal borrowing are tied with life aspirations such as completion of education and housing independence (Houle, 2014). When the financial obligations feel unmanageable, the debt becomes problematic and can damage one's health (Sweet, 2018). Research Question, Data, and Methods. This thesis asked to what extent does carrying consumer credit reinforce and reproduce existing economic inequalities at a young age? Personal context as defined by one's personal circumstances, the time period, and the type of places one lives. To answer this question, the thesis employed quantitative methods including descriptive statistics, regression modelling, and cluster analysis, using unique geocoded longitudinal microdata - the Wealth and Assets Survey (n=250k; ONS, 2021)- covering England, Wales and Scotland from 2006 to 2018. Findings. Overall, there is evidence that adults facing difficulties managing consumer credit are not necessarily living in areas of highest deprivation. Instead, there is a growth of those individuals finding managing consumer credit challenges living in 'middling' type of neighbourhoods. The results provide evidence that the type of places where one lives has an association with their likelihood of taking on categories of personal borrowing; that some categories, but not all, of personal borrowing have an association with the timing of homeownership for young adults; and that certain patterns of consumer credit consumption are prone to be problematic. The thesis therefore supports future research to consider the importance of personal context when evaluating individual's personal finances, especially for young adults, and to stress that those who find managing consumer credit problematic can be overlooked because they live in so-called 'average' neighbourhoods. Overall, this doctoral thesis found consumer credit remains a panacea primarily for working households to weather financial downturns.Next steps. The fellowship plans to progress and to publish research in top journals on the financial realities of working households in the UK and modern conceptualisations of relative poverty; to learn from world-leading employment studies experts; to consolidate and cross-validate two secure access projects under one project; to extend the time coverage from 12 years to 16 years to include the 2020 Covid-19 crisis; to develop networks and disseminate the research to a wide range of audience both within the UK and internationally; to practice embedding impact within research; to develop critical communication and collaboration skills; and to build confidence to apply future large funding grants. These components and gained experience pave the way forward for a robust research agenda and a rich and fulfilling career in academia.