Research on the link between debt and financial stress is emerging. This study was one of the first attempts to examine the association between debt delinquency and financial stress and the moderating role of financial capability in the association. Delinquencies in three types of debts were examined: (a) mortgage, (b) credit card, and (c) student loan. With data from the 2018 U.S. National Financial Capability Study, multivariate regression results showed that payment delinquencies of mortgage, credit card and student loans were positively, while financial capability was negatively associated with financial stress. Further, surprisingly, the results implied that among consumers with debt delinquencies, financial capability may increase financial stress. If both financial capability’s direct and interactive effect were considered, financial capability may decrease financial stress at much smaller rates than those without debt delinquencies. The situation was the worst among consumers with multiple delinquencies, in which the potential net effect of financial capability on financial stress was positive. The results of this study have implications for consumer financial service practices.

关于债务与财务压力之间联系的研究正在兴起。这项研究是研究债务拖欠与财务压力之间的关联以及财务能力在该关联中的调节作用的首次尝试之一。审查了三种债务的拖欠情况：(a) 抵押贷款、(b) 信用卡和 (c) 学生贷款。根据 2018 年美国国家财务能力研究的数据，多元回归结果显示，抵押贷款、信用卡和学生贷款的拖欠率呈正相关，而财务能力与财务压力呈负相关。此外，令人惊讶的是，结果表明，在有债务拖欠的消费者中，财务能力可能会增加财务压力。如果同时考虑财务能力的直接和交互作用，与没有债务拖欠的人相比，财务能力可能会以小得多的速度降低财务压力。这种情况在有多次拖欠的消费者中最为严重，其中财务能力对财务压力的潜在净影响是积极的。这项研究的结果对消费者金融服务实践具有启示意义。