WHAT THE DATA SAY: 43% of Americans 'cheat' on significant other when it comes to finances

By: Ray Day

CONTACT:

Ray Day
ray.day@stagwellglobal.com 

We wanted to share our latest consumer and business insights, based on research from Stagwell. Among the highlights of our weekly consumer sentiment tracking (fielded June 30 – July 2):

WEEKLY WORRIES ABOUT ECONOMY SUBSIDE

Today, 84% of Americans are concerned about the economy and inflation – down 3 points from last week, yet higher than December’s 82% rate.

• 80% worry about a potential U.S. recession (no change)
• 68% about affording living expenses (down 6 points)
• 71% about political divisiveness (down 5 points)
• 80% about U.S. crime rates (down 2 points)
• 64% about the War on Ukraine (down 3 points)
• 50% about a new COVID-19 variant (down 2 points)
• 45% about losing their jobs (down 5 points)

YOUNGER AMERICANS NOT AS PATRIOTIC

As the U.S. celebrated its birthday this week, young people are not as proud to be Americans as older citizens, according to our HarrisX survey with The Messenger.

• 91% say that they are proud to be an American, including 69% who are “very proud.”
• Those 65 and older are the proudest (97%), while those ages 18 to 34 are the least proud (75%).
• 72% say that America is the greatest country in the world – yet that declines to 52% among those ages 18 to 34.
• Even with overall patriotic positivity, the same cannot be said for elected officials. Only 22% say that the government has America’s best interest at heart.
• 78% say that politicians prioritize their personal agendas.
• 24% say the signers of the Declaration of Independence would be pleased with how the country has turned out, while 61% said they would be disappointed.
• The worst parts about living in America today, according to the survey, are gun violence (54%), the role of money in politics (48%), healthcare costs (47%) and racial tensions and inequality (47%).

FINANCIAL INFIDELITY

Nearly half of Americans believe it’s okay to have savings that their significant other doesn’t know about, and 40% think it’s embarrassing for a person to have credit card debt, according to our Harris Poll survey with NerdWallet.

• 43% say they have withheld financial information or lied about it to their significant other.
• 49% believe it is okay to have savings that a significant other doesn’t know about.
• The top secrets: amount spent on a purchase (23%), income (14%) and credit scores (12%).
• 39% also say they’ve withheld financial information or lied about it to their parents.
• Younger Americans are more likely to say they’ve lied or withheld financial information from their partners – including 63% of Gen Z and 58% of Millennials versus 44% of Gen X and 19% of Boomers.

COMPANIES TARGET WASTED TIME

Nearly 70% of U.S. hiring managers say their companies are actively identifying and/or eliminating employee time wasters, such as online distractions and unnecessary meetings, according to our Harris Poll survey with Express Employment Professionals.

• The most common time-wasters are disorganization (44%), online distractions (44%), unnecessary tasks like approval processes and reporting (42%), interruptions (39%) and unnecessary meetings (38%).
• At the same time, 87% of hiring managers say their company has taken actions to ensure employees feel more in control.
• Communicating the importance of work/life balance (42%), offering flexible work hours (42%), offering remote work options (34%) and providing tools to help employees organize tasks/projects (34%) are among the ways companies are attempting to help employees reclaim their time.

SUN’S OUT – FEAR OF SWIMMING IS, TOO

Only 63% of U.S. adults say they are comfortable around water, and 36% do not know how to swim. Our Harris Poll survey with Leslie’s also shows:

• Nearly half of parents with children under 18 say their child does not know how to swim, and 61% say their child has not taken swimming lessons.
• 30% of parents say they are concerned about their child drowning.
• Drowning is the leading cause of accidental death in the U.S. among children ages 1 to 4, and 30% of the drowning deaths occur in swimming pools.

ICYMI

In case you missed it, check out some of the thought-leadership and happenings around Stagwell making news:

• If You Have a Blue Brand or a Red Brand, You Have Less of a Brand.
• Companies start to recognize the importance of ‘out of office’ time to reduce employee burnout
• Social media filters impacting children’s body image
• Key Data Spotlights The State Of Wealth And Health At The Global Black Economic Forum