Shopping the Pain Away
Students turn to retail therapy to cope with the stresses of life.
By Norma Simon, Freelance Reporter
Published on 2/28/08 in Vice
As America continually progresses as a societybased on material desires, it becomes apparent how compulsive shoppinghabits and the repercussions, especially regarding credit card debt,affect many college students, including some at the University.
Formany students, shopping helps relieve stress during the school year andis a source of entertainment. Sophomore Sujey Aguirre said shegenerally shops every weekend and considers herself a "shopaholic."
"Shoppingdoes relieve a great deal of my stress," Aguirre said. "It's just likeany stress reliever, a temporary distraction. I'm in the mall, lookingaround for anything that catches my eye, going from rack to rack andnot thinking about the paper due the next day or the exam I haven'tstudied for."
Although Aguirre said she hasn't gotten intosevere financial trouble because of her shopping, she has used moneyallocated toward grocery shopping and emergencies, she said.
Another reason that shopping is so enjoyable is the feeling it gives you after you buy something, freshman Amelia Unsicker said.
"WhenI see something that I like, it kind of relaxes me and makes meexcited," Unsicker said. "After I buy something, I almost feelaccomplished, and I especially have a thing about shoes. I think thatcould be a downfall in my life."
While some compulsive andfrequent shoppers don't get into serious financial trouble, manystudents are enticed by the promise of credit cards that give them whatthey consider free money. According to Americans for Fairness inLending, a group concerned with credit card companies targeting collegestudents, 83 percent of college students had a credit card in 2001,three-fifths of college freshmen max out their credit cards and, onaverage, credit card balances for college students have increased by134 percent over the past 10 years.
Sophomore Brandon Phillipsgot a credit card last summer at the advice of his parents: foremergency purposes only. Because he was working two jobs at the time,he said he thought going shopping wasn't a big deal, and he couldeasily pay the bill. He maxed out the credit card at $1,000 and isstill chipping away at the balance as he also uses the card to purchasetextbooks.
"I'm still trying to pay it all off ... Once I got the credit card, it was like I had $1,000 to spend," Phillips said.
AlthoughAguirre does not personally own a credit card, she feels the same sortof ease when using a debit card to purchase items.
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