Think of Snidely Whiplash rubbing his hands over
cajoling or *tricking* people into debt; you know, like a pickup artist putting pressure (not force, just social maneuvering) to try to get a girl into bed.
One little thing couldn't hurt; but each one makes it harder to resist or avoid the next.
And the next thing you know, you're screwed.
You probably have a different scenario in mind. I don't see it, because I
took on debt to purchase cars, furniture, and other things we wanted. After
we did, things would be tight for a while, but I was always able to get
things paid down.
I just never saw someone else being the culprit there.