ABSTRACT

Australia adopted income-contingent government loans for tertiary students 30 years ago, aiming to promote greater access and equity in higher education, as repayments were required only when income exceeded a threshold. Why then does the scheme still cause dissension and with what consequences for government? We analyse qualitative and quantitative survey data to answer this question. Contrary to the government’s universal conception of fairness, graduates keenly perceive unfairness relative to their peers. Our results indicate that perceptions of unfair treatment create enduring difficulties for governments in securing cooperation from their citizens.

摘要

30 年前，澳大利亚为高等教育学生采用了以收入为条件的政府贷款，旨在促进高等教育的更多机会和公平，因为只有当收入超过阈值时才需要还款。那么，为什么该计划仍然引起分歧，对政府造成什么后果？我们分析定性和定量调查数据来回答这个问题。与政府普遍的公平观念相反，毕业生敏锐地察觉到相对于同龄人的不公平。我们的研究结果表明，对不公平待遇的看法给政府在确保公民合作方面造成了持久的困难。