I am 24 years old now, and began accumulating debt when I was 19 years old. I didn't get the idea from my parents, because they are perfect role models: can afford 'bigger and better', but are happy with what they have. Have large savings, retirement, pension, etc. but don't touch it. Buy their cars in cash and keep them for years. They just do everything right (wouldn't they love to hear that, lol). I am not sure what caused me to fall into the habits I did, and I won't blame the credit card companies, or anyone but myself. Luckily, I realized I needed to change and have done so with not much effort. I only had about $7-8K in debt, (the average), and am now down to $2k, within the same year. In fact, I began fighting the battle in late February and have made good progress (in my opinion). I just needed to take a hard look at the money I was wasting and how unhappy it made me to deal with all the bills. Knowing the 'high' of eliminating debt is the key motivator for me.