Annotated Bibliography Assignment
Collinge, Alan. The Federal Student Loan Program is Finished. Medium, Web.
In this article, Collinge heavily criticizes the federal student loan program, claiming it must be abolished. In particular, he argues that the federal student loan program is an extremely inefficient way of funding higher education in the United States. Most students default on loan payments, being unable to repay their debt. In 2004, the default rate would reach 40% with an average loan size of $13,000. Nowadays, students borrow approximately $39,000 on average, while wages have not tripled since 2004. As a result, in 2020, 58,9% of the borrowers were not paying at all. In 18 U.S. states, student loan debt exceeded the state budget (Collinge). Therefore, scraping the failed lending program would be the most reasonable course of action for President Biden.
Croes, Emmelyn, and Jos Bartels. “Young Adults’ Motivations for Following Social Influencers and Their Relationship to Identification and Buying Behavior.” Computers in Human Behavior, vol. 124, 2021, 106910.
Croes and Bartels surveyed 415 Dutch teenagers and young adults between 16 and 25 to determine what makes them follow social media influencers. In total, six main motivations have been revealed: information sharing, cool trend following, relaxation, companionship, boredom, and information seeking (Croes and Bartels). In that regard, social media influencers play an important role in teenagers’ and young adults’ buying decisions. The respondents viewed influencers as peers and companions, which explained their willingness to purchase endorsed products (Croes and Bartels). However, boredom and entertainment were the primary reasons to follow the influencers, so addressing these needs of teenagers and young adults may reduce the influencers’ impact.
The Editors. “Has Higher Education in the United States Lost Its Way?” The MIT Press Reader, Web.
In their interview with the MIT Press Reader editors, Wendy Fischman and Howard Gardner, the authors of The Real World of College book, argued that the U.S. colleges lost sight of their mission. In particular, colleges turned education into a commodity and measure of success, which had a negative impact on the students. Firstly, students now prioritize getting good grades or building a resume for a job over knowledge, sometimes resorting to outright cheating. Secondly, students develop egocentrism in addition to feeling abandoned and crushed by the pressure of expectations (The Editors). Ultimately, Fischman and Gardner urged U.S. colleges to remember their core educational mission instead of giving in to conflicting messages on traditional and social media and hurting students.
Kundu, Anindya. “Understanding College “Burnout” From a Social Perspective: Reigniting the Agency of Low-Income Racial Minority Strivers Towards Achievement.” The Urban Review, vol. 51, no. 5, 2019 6, pp. 677-698.
In her interview-based qualitative study, Kundu claims that low-income, first-generation, and racial minority students are susceptible to mental health deterioration and subsequent academic issues. These students adopt a striver mindset to overcome the challenges of an unsupportive college campus environment. In doing so, they feel the need to persist alone, fight against the odds, and demonstrate their grit (Kundu). As a result, these students risk developing college burnout, a condition highly detrimental to their life satisfaction and academic performance. Ultimately, Kundu recommends colleges mobilize institutional resources to support student endurance. In addition, the study acknowledges the positive effect of mentorship on students’ mental resilience (Kundu). Thus, mentor support is instrumental in preventing unhealthy striver tendencies in at-risk student groups.
Pascoe, Michaela C., et al. “The Impact of Stress on Students in Secondary School and Higher Education.” International Journal of Adolescence and Youth, vol. 25, no. 1, 2020, pp. 104-112.
In a large-scale cross-cultural narrative review, Pascoe et al. outlined the adverse effects of academic-related stress in students. Firstly, high levels of stress lead to depression and anxiety systems, which in turn results in academic performance deterioration. Secondly, students pressured by the need for academic achievement report higher rates of drug and alcohol use. Finally, academic-related stress is associated with preventable physical health issues and sleep disorders (Pascoe et al.). Overall, the overzealous pursuit of academic achievement can produce the opposite outcome. Students may adopt harmful coping strategies to deal with academic stress. In turn, these strategies may further undermine their academic performance, forcing the students into a vicious circle situation.
Rich, Jameson. Where are the Losers? We’re Missing Slackers. Dirt, Web.
In his article on the slacker subculture, Rich notes the extinction of so-called “losers” from public space and culture. He considers it an “extinction of another species once vital to the harmony of our world” (Rich). Previously, slackers had a strong presence in pop culture and everyday life. They used to be viewed neutrally or positively as an embodiment of flawed yet laid-back and decent human beings who live however they want. Nowadays, slackers are portrayed as villains who hold back and drag others down. Instead, strivers have risen to the top — hyper-competent individuals who shed and hide their imperfections on their road to success (Rich). In that regard, selling out to achieve public endorsement has become the life goal pursued by many.
Spinks, Rosie. The Age of the Influencer has Peaked. It’s Time for the Slacker to Rise Again. Quartz, Web.
In contrast with the previous article, Spinks notes a comeback of the slacker culture and attitude to life. She links the striver mindset with a dominant neoliberal paradigm that propelled self-obsession with success and optimization in millennials. According to Spinks, the “Instagram aesthetic” was the pinnacle of a striver attitude to life. The Instagram influencers perfected the craft of selling out, effectively becoming “famous for being famous” (Spinks). However, social media, the pillar of the striver lifestyle, has lost a significant share of credibility. Spinks exemplifies that shift with the Theranos scandal, when Elizabeth Holmes, a successful founder of an ambitious startup, was exposed as a scammer. Holmes’ perfectly-crafted personal brand collapsed spectacularly, revealing all unpleasant sides of striving. In that regard, the slacker mindset is coming back, at least aesthetically, since life in the U.S. is too expensive to be a true slacker at the economic level.