KEY FINDINGS NEWSLETTER

Summer 2002 Issue

Diversity Myths in America
Many Americans believe the US is more diverse than it really is. Two in five (39%) estimate that over half the population is of mixed race, although only 2% of people claimed this about themselves on the 2000 Census. One-third (34%) of Hispanics believe they account for at least half of Americans, but only make up just under 13%. Twenty-eight percent of Blacks believe 50% of Americans are Black, while the actual number is 13%. 

American Principles
Americans say freedom of speech is the most important principle in American society today. However, when asked about principles as they relate specifically to the respondent and his or her family, access to affordable healthcare came out on top, while freedom of speech moved down several places on the list. See the chart below for details.

 

Demographics Affecting the Workplace
A study by the Society for Human Resource Management shows that demographic changes are leading many American employers to alter the way they do business. The major changes are the aging population, more ethnic diversity, increasing number of women in the workplace, and changes in family makeup. The chart below shows how companies are responding to these issues.

Opinion of American Industries
Banks are now seen as serving people better than other industries. According to Harris Interactive, this ranking is not because banks are operating better, but because other industries have fallen in consumers’ esteem. The chart below shows the current and past rankings of several industries.

 

Mobile Phone Use
Almost 50% of Americans now use a mobile telephone. This saturation level has caused a drop in subscriber growth: it increased only 17% from 2000 to 2001, compared to 27% in the prior year.

The 30-34 age group has the highest penetration at nearly 70%. Some 16.5 million college-age Americans have a mobile phone, as do 12 million teenagers. Of the users who are children under age 18, 10% pay for their own phone and 19% pay for their own service. 

Americans Seeking Health Information Online
Statistics show that between 1998 and 2002, the number of Americans seeking health information online jumped from 54 million to 110 million. Sixty percent look online for information on their own, but rely on it only with their doctors’ advice. Fewer, 38%, judge the information on their own without consulting their physician. Three percent search for information online only when their doctor instructs them to do so.

Telecommuting
According to the International Telework Association and Council, the estimated number of Americans who telecommuted at least some portion of the week jumped more than 42% in two years, from 19.6 million in 1999 to 28 million in 2001. The US Census figures show that telecommuters who worked at home three or more days a week grew almost 23%, from 3.4 million in 1990 to 4.2 million in 2000.

More Americans say they would like to telecommute. A recent survey by The Winston Group shows that more than one-half (54%) of adult workers feel that telecommuting would improve the quality of their life. Forty-six percent believe the quality of their work would improve or that they would be more productive, and 43% say they would be a better spouse and/or parent. The potential yearly cost savings resulting from telecommuting for American companies is around $23 billion.

Bullets

  • More collect calls are placed on Father’s Day than any other day in the year.

     

  • One in five Americans (22%) who have over $250,000 annual income or a net worth of more than $1 million are willing to pay $100,000 for a 15-minute sub-orbital space flight. For a two-week orbital flight, 7% say they would pay $20 million and another 16% would pay $5 million.

     

  • The US Department of Defense currently generates almost 700,000 relocations each year. This is more than all US corporations combined.

     

  • Six in 10 married or cohabitating people say that their sleeping partner does something that prevents them from sleeping.

     

  • New York City was the most crowded American city in 2000 with more than 26,000 people per square mile. Anchorage, Alaska was the least crowded with 153.

     

  • Some 12% of women and 1% of men say their current occupation is homemaking.

     

  • Human resource professionals say Friday (39%) is the best day to lay off or fire employees, 24% choose Monday, 13% select Thursday, and 12% each opt for Tuesday and Wednesday.

     

  • Hispanic buying power will grow 315% between 1990 and 2007, compared to a 111% increase in white buying power.

     

  • The fastest growing forms of exercise from 2000 to 2001 were Pilates training (40%), elliptical motion trainers (34%) and Yoga/Tai Chi (32%).

     

  • The percentage of companies with 200+ employees that offer retiree health benefits dropped to 34% in 2001, from 41% in 1999.

     

  • Eighty percent of Americans are overweight, up from 64% in 1990.

     

  • Seven in 10 Americans support the death penalty for a person convicted of murder, while 25% oppose it. These figures are only slightly higher than those for 2000 and 2001.

     

  • A recent study of prime-time tv dramas based on hospital staff and their patients shows the most common topics addressed were life issues, patients’ rights, social disparities in care, HMOs, biotechnology, issues concerning social services, and clinical trials. Current hot topics not covered were the uninsured, prescription drug coverage, and insurance issues not related to HMOs.

     

  • A study by the American Medical Association shows that 78% of doctors now use the internet for work; 33% have their own web sites that they use for promoting their practices and for patient information.

     

  • In 1994, 36% of Americans thought secondhand smoke was “very harmful” to adults and 42% said it was “somewhat harmful.” In 2002, over one-half (56%) believe it is “very harmful” and 31% say it is “somewhat harmful.”

     

  • Thirty-six percent of Americans try to include soda pop in their diet; 41% actively try to avoid it.

     

  • A recent survey conducted by Expedia.co.uk shows that Germans (+41 points) are the world’s best tourists, followed by Americans (+32 points) and Japanese (+24 points). British tourists (-44 points) received the lowest ratings of any country.

     

  • One-half (51%) of Americans think it is appropriate for a man over 60 years of age to father a child, while 41% say it is inappropriate.

     

  • Over one-half (53%) of physicians would recommend a career in medicine to young people, while 45% would not. Paperwork / administrative hassles (57%) and the loss of autonomy (46%) were the most frequently mentioned reasons for not recommending it.

     

  • About three-quarters (76%) of American clergy are either overweight or obese, compared to 61% of the general population.

     

  • Most (81%) of Fortune 500 companies post their job listings on their own web sites. One-half (51%) post on Monster.com, 43% on HotJobs.com and 22% on CareerBuilder.com.

     

  • Between 2001 and 2002, the number of online Hispanics in the US jumped 19% to 14.5 million.

     

  • Hispanics spend 55% of their time online at Spanish-language web sites. This is up from 41% a year ago.

     

  • English is the primary language for 40.2% of the worldwide internet population. Non-English European languages are primary for 33.9% and Asian languages for 26.1%.

     

  • Spam (unsolicited commercial e-mail) makes up 37% of e-mails received at home and 28% received at work. One-half (52%) of recipients delete spam without reading it. Spam attacks increased 500% from July 2001 to July 2002.

     

  • About 39% of US adults research a product online before buying it in a store.

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