78% of Australians have turned to TV to fill the time in lockdown according to new research
New research has shown 78% of Australians are watching TV to pass their spare time while stuck in isolation and the majority of those surveyed said they believe it will take at least nine months for life to return to where it was before COVID-19.
17% of consumers surveyed in Dentsu Aegis Network’s Dentsu Consumer Intelligence Study said they don’t believe life will ever go back to how it was before the pandemic.
The survey, which was conducted with 1681 consumers between April 13 and May 7, found over half of the recipients are now working from home and 45% have had their employment impacted by COVID-19 in some way.
26% of the millennials (26-39-year olds) surveyed have turned to podcasts to fill the time. Gen X and boomers (40-59-year olds and 60-74-year olds) are spending their leisure time watching TV while 59% of Gen Z (16-25-year olds) spend more of their time watching streaming services.
Despite a number of campaigns aimed at easing the fears of Australians, only 39% of those surveyed said they fully trusted the Federal Government while just 38% trust State Government and 28% local government.
The ‘pulse-check’ for Australians showed the younger demographics were taking longer to adapt to the changes of COVID-19, with 14% of Gen Z still feeling ‘initial shock’ and 28% of millennials still ‘coming to grips’ with the lockdown.
Christine McKinnon, Dentsu’s head of intelligence, said the survey gave a good sign of what to expect from consumers as the restrictions begin to ease.
“Since COVID-19 started, most Australians have been living a comparable way of life indoors. As restrictions begin to ease, we can expect to see some interesting shifts in how people view society, how they change their lifestyle, and any changes to people’s level of trust in our key institutions,” said McKinnon.
“Right now, security remains a key focus for people under 60, whereas older Australians are seeking stronger leadership. People have also told us that they are concerned about the economy, unemployment, climate change and immigration.
“We’ll be using these insights to help businesses recognise how their customers or employees may have changed since the outbreak began and what plans they need to put in place to ensure they are engaging with the right people at the right time,” said McKinnon.
Only 20% of those surveyed said they trusted the media, although they still turned to it for updates during the pandemic. Around 20% of Gen Z’s and millennials said they were ‘constantly’ seeking new information while 80% of boomers said they were looking for new information about the pandemic at least once a day. Only 15% said they trusted information found on social media.
