Wellbeing & Happiness
December 2020
Polling – Reflections on 2020
The Australia Institute surveyed a nationally representative sample of 1,018 Australians about their perceptions of the year 2020. Australians were presented with a list of 11 words or phrases and asked which best describes 2020. “Unprecedented” was the single most popular choice, chosen by 19%. “Unprecedented” was followed by “Terrible” (14%), “Tragic” (12%) and “Exhausting”
- NSW
Polling – Assisted dying in NSW
The Australia Institute surveyed a sample of 1,038 New South Wales residents about their position on whether voluntary assisted dying (VAD) should be available to people with terminal illnesses who are experiencing unrelievable suffering and who ask to die.
November 2020
December 2019
Polling: Christmas presents and waste
New research from The Australia Institute has revealed that nearly one third of Australians (30%) are expecting to receive a gift that they will never use this Christmas.
January 2019
Trolls and polls: the economic costs of online harassment and cyberhate
The Australia Institute was commissioned by independent journalist and researcher Ginger Gorman to estimate the economic costs of online harassment and cyberhate. This report is part of a wider research by Ms Gorman on cyberhate. In April 2018, a nationally representative sample of 1,557 Australians were surveyed about online harassment and cyberhate. The poll was
May 2016
November 2015
Workin’ 9 to 5.30 – Unpaid overtime and work life balance
This paper explores the cost of unpaid overtime, the extent to which Australian workers fail to take a break and the cost of work bleeding into everyday life.
November 2014
Walking the tightrope: Have Australians achieved work/life balance?
Former Prime Minister of Australia John Howard described work/life balance as a “BBQ-stopper” in 2001. Since then, the term “work/life balance” has been part of the Australian lexicon, but just how well are Australians achieving it? National Go Home on Time Day was launched by The Australia Institute in 2009 as a light-hearted way to
November 2013
SUBMISSION: The MRRT should not be abolished
Submission to the Senate Inquiry into Minerals Resource Rent Tax Repeal and Other Measures Bill 2013.
Hard to get a break?
Problems getting enough work, breaking back into the workforce or getting a break from overwork are taking their toll on millions of Australian workers, making us sick and leading to less productive and enjoyable workplaces. Whether employees are overworked, underworked or out of work, millions are feeling stressed and their mental health and general health
Warkworth Consent Modification 6
In November 2013 The Australia Institute made a submission on the application to modify the consent conditions of Rio Tinto’s Warkworth mine, near Singleton in the Hunter Valley, NSW. This modification allows the mine to expand into areas that the Land and Environment Court had disallowed, as the economic benefits of doing so did not
August 2013
Tough on crime
Contrary to public perception, the property crime rate in Australia actually declined between 2001 and 2010. There is a reality gap between declining crime rates and the popular rhetoric of ‘tough on crime’ media stories and political policies. Campaigning in the recent West Australian, New South Wales and Victorian state elections saw both sides of
November 2012
An unhealthy obsession: The impact of work hours and workplace culture on Australia’s health
Australians work some of the longest hours in the developed world – substantially longer than their counterparts in Denmark, The Netherlands and Norway. For many Australians though, work stress is related not to the number of hours worked, but a mismatch between the workers’ desired and actual hours of work, and the inflexibility of these
June 2012
All the lonely people: Loneliness in Australia, 2001-2009
Loneliness is the disconnect felt between desired interpersonal relationships and those that one perceives they currently have. While the subjective nature of this experience makes measuring loneliness difficult, understanding loneliness is important for the development of a range of social policies. The availability of longitudinal Household Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey data
February 2012
- NSW
Submission to the City of Sydney on Community Wellbeing Indicators
Catalyst Australia welcomes the initiative of the City of Sydney in developing Wellbeing Indicators. We applaud the endeavour, and recognize that the process of developing the Indicators will promote community awareness of factors that contribute to social wellbeing as well as provide information to guide future policy-making by the City of Sydney and potentially the
November 2011
Polluted time: Blurring the boundaries between work and life
In recent decades technology has revolutionised the way companies do business and workers do their jobs. From the very top of organisations to the most menial and low-paid roles, the great majority of employees now use information and communication technology to some extent for work. Some spend their entire working lives in front of a
September 2006
February 2005
Mapping Loneliness in Australia
Using national survey data, this paper outlines patters of loneliness, support and friendship and assesses who is most at risk of emotional and social isolation and who is socially supported and connected.
July 2004
Overconsumption of pet food in Australia
Despite the fact that real incomes are increasing majority of Australians believe they cannot afford the necessities. This extends to pet care. 64% of Australians have pets; our total expenditure on our pets is $2.3b in 2002. Some pet products cost $800 and dog food can be $100kg. The luxury pet goods industry is emblematic
May 2004
Carpe Diem? The Deferred Happiness Syndrome
Deferred Happiness Syndrome affects 30% of Australians and occurs when employees are not satisfied with work but do it to achieve happiness later on, often through money and material interests. This often results in downshifters that voluntarily reduce working hours to ensure better lifestyles.
February 2004
Can’t Buy Me Love? Young Australians’ views on parental work, time, guilt and their own consumption
Examines the perspective of young people about their parents’ paid and unpaid work, its implications for their lives and the links between work and consumption.
Getting a Life: Understanding the downshifting phenomenon in Australia
Explores in detail the life changes and attitudes of 20 downshifters to answer the questions prompted by the first study on downshifting completed in January 2003. The in-depth interviews were augmented by four focus groups held across the country and aimed to explain why people downshift, how they change, how others react, what are their
November 2003
Downshifting in Britain: A sea-change in the pursuit of happiness
This study parallels Discussion Paper 50 and shows that 25 per cent of British adults aged between 30 and 59 have downshifted over the last ten years.
January 2003
Downshifting in Australia: A sea-change in the pursuit of happiness
The preoccupation with money and consumption comes at an increasing cost. Many Australians consider that money-hunger conflicts with their deeper values and preferences and results in a society that is too materialistic. There is evidence that many people are deciding to accept lower incomes and consumption levels in order to have more balance in their
December 2000
Tracking Well-being in Australia: The Genuine Progress Indicator 2000
This paper reports an updated version of the GPI published by The Australia Institute in 1997. The paper is in two parts, the first providing the rational for the GPI and raising some methodological issues. The second part provides a comprehensive discussion of each component making up the GPI.
May 2000
Indicators of a Sustainable Community: Measuring Quality of Life in Newcastle
This discussion paper is part of the Australia Institute’s work program on measuring quality of life. The Institute has formed a collaborative partnership with Newcastle City Council to build an indicator series against which the Newcastle community’s progress towards sustainability can be measured.
September 1999
Quality of Life in Australia: An analysis of public perceptions
This study uses a survey of 1200 Australians to investigate public perceptions of quality of life in Australia. It contradicts recent claims of a new mood of optimism in Australia and adds to the body of evidence that suggests our policy makers give too much emphasis to economic growth at all costs.
September 1997
The Genuine Progress Indicator for Australia
It has long been recognised that GDP growth does not correlate well with changes in social welfare, i.e. national well-being. The GPI adjusts GDP by 23 factors that reflect some of the social and environmental costs of economic growth to give a better measures of changes in national prosperity. This paper explores these issues in