Money worries mean more stress and less sex for Kiwis - survey

According to the latest Attitude New Zealand survey a quarter of all Kiwis say stress about money is getting in the way of their sex lives. And in a worrying sign for retailers at the busiest shopping time of the year, the majority of people say they’re putting big spend ups on hold.

The survey, which contains the first ever New Zealand Stress Index, says those most over stressed and under sexed are between 35 and 44 years old.

Chris Pescott, Managing Director of Perceptive, the company which conducts the survey, says the three things topping the stress index, unsurprisingly, all relate to money.

“The survey showed that savings ability (5.7 out of 10), spending power (5.1), and retirement security (5.1) seem to stress us out the most, with females and those aged 45-54 feeling the financial strain more than others.

“Twenty five percent of males say stress resulting from reduced spending power (or lack of money) was the main source of arguments. Perhaps, not surprisingly, more females (36%) stated that their personal life was the main cause of strife”, says Pescott.

Retailers’ hopes of a Christmas bonanza may also prove misplaced, says Pescott.

“These money worries are impacting big-ticket purchases with 61 percent saying they’re not planning to buy anything worth more than $2,000 in the next six months. And 35% of respondents say it will negatively affect their Christmas.”

In other survey findings, Kiwis gave the government a pat on the back, with more than 40 percent saying it had coped either “well” or “very well” with the recession. A further 33% were sitting on the fence.

Key survey findings include:
- 53% are not confident the recession is over
- 63% are putting more effort into becoming debt free
- 60% feel their work place has coped well, or very well, with the recession
- More than 30% of people had changed their diet (for worse and for better) as a result of the recession.
- Three things causing the least stress are climate change, education and politics
- Two thirds still consider New Zealand a safe place, but not as safe as it used to be
- Almost half of those surveyed feel our children’s education is falling behind the rest of the world
- 40% of young people (15-24 years) find their news online, while more than half of those aged 55+ still rely on television

Perceptive’s Attitude New Zealand survey of 1,000 people throughout New Zealand was conducted during November 2009, and has a margin of error of ±3%.

The full results are available at www.attitudenz.co.nz

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About Perceptive
Perceptive is an agency that specialises in customer driven marketing. The Attitude New Zealand survey was designed purely for Kiwi marketers to gain a regular and independent snapshot of how New Zealanders feel, and how their attitudes are being affected. Insights are captured from New Zealanders through regular surveys, and the information is made available to marketers through an interactive website: www.attitudenz.co.nz