I often get asked what will be the lasting effects of the Global Financial Crisis and the Australian recession on Australian attitudes and behaviours. What will be the lesson to be learnt from all this?
In many ways, it is early days for Australian consumers. Sure the finance media has been full of bad news for over twelve months.
But up until the end of January we were still finding that consumers were taking a cautiously optimistic approach to the economy.
We’ll have to wait and see how long our economic troubles last before we can predict any lasting changes to the outlook of any generation of Australian.
However the one definite change already happening is in the area of attitudes to debt, particularly credit card debt.
We ran a poll of more than 1000 Australians last week and asked them: “If there was one thing you could change about your current financial situation, what would it be?”
We gave them the following options:
• To be free of all credit card debt
• To reduce the interest rate on my mortgage by 0.5%
• To get a job raise of $10,000
• To have a better performing superannuation
• To be eligible for six months of parental leave
• None of the above
It was no surprise that almost a third (31%) opted to be free of all credit card debt, outstripping by one per cent those who opted for a $10k pay rise.
These numbers square with what we have been finding in our research since December.
More than anything else, Australians are now aware of the traps of credit card debt, particularly at a time when they are anxious about job security and wage restraint.
These poll results give us some insight into the reasons why the Rudd government had taken a popularity hit in recent weeks.
From the point of view of our research, it’s not so much a reflection of people’s dissatisfaction with the budget, rather the almost universal disapproval for the $900 stimulus package approach to jump-starting the economy.
In our qualitative research we have found that while consumers reported having various plans for their bundle of Rudd dollars, they were unanimous in the view that it was bad policy.
The reasoning? More retail spending on ‘stuff’ isn’t going save us from an economic meltdown created by us spending too much on ‘stuff’.
The government’s stimulus package has been seen by many consumers as the equivalent of melting the credit card on designer shoes.
They haven’t fully grasped onto the concept that spending equals jobs.
Perhaps, they are too focused on cutting back and sitting tight until they see how bad the recession will get.
This is clearly an opportunity for Malcolm Turnbull. Interestingly, while we have found that consumers express views about the stimulus package and deficit akin to Turnbull’s public pronouncements, they haven’t joined the dots. He has been listening to them but they haven’t been listening to him.
But given the recent focus on the deficit, consumers might start tuning in to his message of irresponsible government spending and a debt burden for future generations.
Facebook Recommendations
Read all about it
Punch live
Up to the minute Twitter chatter
Tip for young journos. Have a short CV. A page, two max.
@DarrenFerrari @andrewcatsaras And so he should be. He might be the chap humming in the background to the end of the recording.
Recent posts
The latest and greatest
New speaker’s slack clobber, old speaker clobbers slackers
Peter Slipper, draped in black in a manner most young voters will not see outside Hogwarts, has dramatically…
Snappy 60th birthday to our most fun newspaper
Life is far from dull in the Northern Territory. Or if it is, we’ll never know. And that’s…
There’s no evidence sex-for-cab-fares is a trend
Fifteen years ago when one of your girlfriends had a few too many Illusion shots standard practice was…
Nosebleed Section
choice ringside rantings
From: City vs country: What would you change your life for?
Dieter Moeckel says:
We made the tree change from Darwin to Wonbah more than 15 years ago. After fencing, a road, and couple of dams our money was gone. Super is enough to live comfortably. We have geese growing old and stringy the only one that made it to the pot committed Kamakazi by flying into a tree; the chooks are… [read more]From: I’d rather have a piece of toast than listen to crap lyrics
Erick says:
Led Zeppelin are responsible for my all-time favourite mixed metaphor: "There you sit, sit and stare, like a book on a shelf rusting." (Misty Mountain Hop) I laugh every time I hear it. Hmmm, I believe I've decided what to play on the way to work today. [read more]Gentle jabs to the ribs
No wuckin forries. These nuckin futs are tuckin fops
Well, puck me with a fitchfork. The F-word is apparently an acceptable part of Australian speech. That’s… Read more
Most commented