KEY FINDINGS NEWSLETTER

Fall 2001

Young Adults' Views on Marriage
A recent study shows that, among young adults age 20-29, marriage is losing many of the larger social, economic, religious and public purposes it once had. Ninety-four percent say that they are seeking their “soul mate” and rate this higher than matters of religion, financial affairs and the ability to be a good parent. They see marriage as an intensely private union combining sexual fidelity, romantic love, emotional intimacy and togetherness. For example, 80% of the women in this group feel that a husband who can communicate about his deepest feelings is more desirable than one who makes a good living. The following chart provides other revealing opinions of these young adults.

Today's Matures Are Different
Every eight seconds another American turns 50 years old. According to the American Association of Retired Persons, this ballooning 50+ age segment is very different from its predecessors of 20 years ago. For example, 20% are black, Hispanic or other minority, compared to 13% in 1980. Twice as many have had some college and divorce rates have almost doubled. Age 65 is no longer the standard retirement age or the signal for old age: people are expected to have another 20 years of life and relatively good health beyond it.

This emerging class of sports also encompasses surfing, artificial wall climbing, paintball, mountain biking and inline skating. American Sports Data says most participants are Generation Y males looking for the adrenaline rush of being “on the edge.” They also suggest that these youths are not just following fads, they are actually rooted in a set of values that include fierce determination, alienation, defiance and inwardly focused aggression.

Science Knowledge, Men vs Women
A survey conducted by the National Opinion Research Center for the National Science Foundation indicates that a person’s basic science knowledge is affected most by his/her gender. Other factors reviewed that did not affect the survey results were educational level, college major, exposure to college science, age, occupation and workplace experience. Below are results from this survey.

Heroes Defined
When asked to name people they think of as heroes, 37% of Americans name parents or relatives and 57% name public figures. The most common reason for naming someone as a hero is “not giving up until the goal is accomplished.”

Segmenting Women By Personal Style
On an importance scale of 1 to 5, most (84%) women rate appearance as a five. Beauty esteem (what a woman thinks about her own beauty) is highest from ages 18 to 24, and starts rising again around age 45. The following chart groups women consumers based on their attitudes about appearance.

Jump in Healthcare Costs
For privately insured individuals, healthcare costs jumped 7.2% during 2000 — the largest increase in a decade. The majority of this increase was due to rising hospital care costs. The chart below details these and other significant changes.

Active Online Population
More than one-third of Americans are active online users. The chart below shows how different age groups’ participation has grown and will continue this upward trend through 2003.

E-Mail Junkies
Most (64%) at-work internet users check their e-mail on a regular basis during the day, 34% check it a minimum of six times. The average user receives 22 e-mails per day and spends 49 minutes reading and managing it. Many users can’t stay away: 42% check their business e-mail while on vacation and 23% check it on weekends.

Online Shoppers Defined
A 2001 study conducted by the Marriott School of Management at Brigham Young University categorizes online consumers based on their technological savvy and shopping habits. The chart below shows the eight different consumer groups defined in the study.

Bullets

• Almost six in 10 marriages (59%) of brides under age 18 end in separation or divorce within 15 years, compared to 36% of those where the woman was 20 or older.

• According to Screenvision Cinema Promotions, popcorn eaters are three times more likely than others to cry during movies. This group is also three more times likely to feel romantic after a film.

• Over 2 million American men (one in six single parents) were single fathers during 2000.

• More than one million car crashes occur each year at U.S. intersections that have traffic signals.

• Over one-quarter (26.8%) of U.S. workers earned poverty-level wages (less than $8.19 per hour) in 1999.

• The federal minimum wage was increased four times during the 1990s, but its inflation-adjusted value was still 20% lower in 2000 than in 1979.

• During 1999, the average CEO earned 107 times more than the typical worker. This is up from 56 times more in 1989 and 20 times more in 1962. CEOs in the U.S. earned 2.5 times more than their foreign counterparts.

• Americans spent $37.76 billion ($152.97 per capita) on lottery tickets during 2000, up 3.52% from 1999. Per capita spending was highest in Rhode Island and lowest in Montana.

• The top five most trusted television newscasters are Tom Brokaw (19.1%), Peter Jennings (16.2%), Dan Rather (14.6%), Diane Sawyer (7.7%) and Katie Couric (6.5%).

• By the end of 2000, there were 7.2 million millionaires worldwide. Over one-third (35%) of these live in the U.S. or Canada.

• The average American consumer handles around $600 worth of coins each year.

• On average, Americans spent 36 hours stuck in traffic during 1999, up from 34 hours in 1997 and 11 hours in 1982. “Rush hour” in major cities has expanded from three to six hours over the past 20 years.

• According to a recent poll by Harris Interactive, the top 10 best brands are Sony, Ford, General Electric, Toyota, General Motors, Coca-Cola, Microsoft, IBM, Hewlett Packard, and RCA.

• Today, 91% of teenagers say they approve of marriage between blacks and whites, up from 52% in 1977.

• The most-kept secret between American spouses is how much they spend: 19% admit to not telling the real price of something they bought. The second most-kept secrets (15% each) are about a failure at work and a child’s behavior.

• Seventy-one percent of men think the death penalty is morally acceptable. Only 55% of women agree.

• Over one-half (54%) of Americans believe there is intelligent life on other planets.

• Over one-third (35%) of American workers are willing to take a pay cut of 10% or more in return for a shorter commute.

• Almost one-third of U.S. millionaires are 35 years old or younger.

• Americans ate 20 billion hot dogs — approximately 70 per person — during 2000.

• Almost one-quarter (24%) of Americans age 12-17 do not know who fought whom in the American Civil War.

• Items entering America’s landfills are approximately 40% paper products, 20% yard refuse, 9% metals, 9% food, 8% glass and 7% plastic.

• One-third (33%) of American workers believe they have too much work to take a vacation. Another 11% are afraid their job would not be there when they returned.

• Americans with household income over $35,000 prefer that businesses contact them via direct mail (34%). Less preferred methods include print ads (30%), television (25%), radio (5%), e-mail (4%), the internet (2%) and telemarketing (0%).

• Two-thirds of Americans changed their opinion about New York City and New Yorkers in the wake of the attack on the World Trade Center. Of these individuals, 69% had a much better opinion and 19% had a somewhat better opinion.

• The typical household purchased precooked, ready-made meals 6.6 times per month during 2000, up from 3.9 times per month in 1998.

• Almost one-quarter (23%) of health club members are age 55 or older.

• Nearly three-quarters (73%) of adults do not know their state’s blood-alcohol concentration limit.

• Three in 10 working families (29%) with 1-3 children under the age of 12 do not earn enough income to afford basic necessities such as food, housing, healthcare and childcare.

• The home exercise equipment market jumped from $1.9 billion in 1990 to $5.8 billion in 2000.

• Sales of organic food rose 19% during 2000 to reach $5.8 billion. After 10 years of double-digit growth, it now accounts for about 1% of total U.S. retail food sales.

• The average uninsured person visits a physician about twice per year, one-half as often as the average person with insurance.

• The percentage of physicians providing charity care fell to 72% in 1999 from 76% in 1997. Even though the number of patient care physicians rose by 16,000, the number providing charity care declined by 4,000.

• Men with mobile phones spend an average of 372 minutes per month on the phone, while women spend only 275 minutes.

• Half (56%) of teenagers have more than one e-mail address or screen name.

• When asked what the internet was like, Americans compared it to a library (45%), highway (15%), shopping mall (14%), wild west (8%), school (7%), town hall/meeting place (3%), and banking/investment office (3%).

• Internet users say that pop-up ads are more annoying than e-mail spam, by a 65% to 34% margin.

• When searching for a product online, consumers most often type the product name in a search engine (28%), go to a store’s URL (23%), type the brand name in a search engine (9%), type the store name in a search engine (5%), or go to the shopping page of a search engine (5%).

• Most public schools (83%) provide e-mail access for 50% or more of their teachers.

• Nearly two-thirds (65%) of internet users consider a site’s privacy policy when deciding whether to do business with it.

• The top five websites that Hispanic internet users visit are: Univision.com, Terra.com, Espanol.Yahoo.com, LaMusica.com and StarMedia.com.

• The time Hispanic internet users spent with Spanish content websites jumped from 30% to 39% between August 2000 and March 2001.

• Over one-half (54%) of US adults say that new technologies such as cellphones, the internet and other devices make their leisure time more enjoyable. Twenty-nine percent say that these devices cut into their leisure time.

• Eighteen percent of Americans’ videocassette recorders are blinking 12:00. Men under age 35 are most likely to have it set to the correct time.

• Consumers rarely make a purchase on their first visit to an online store. Typically, they visit a website 3-7 times over 20 to 30 days before buying.

• Almost two in three adults (65%) support the use of cameras at traffic lights to enforce laws against red-light running, up from 52% in 2000.