Australians’ stress levels surpass those of America
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In a recent Newspoll survey, Aussies came out 15 per cent more frazzled than our US counterparts. Rosie Brogan looks at the rise in our national stress levels.
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- Australians’ stress levels surpass those of America
We may have a reputation as the one of the most laid back continents on earth, but Australia’s real face has its brow firmly furrowed. A recent Newspoll survey found 90 per cent of Australians are experiencing stress in their lives, and 43 per cent describe themselves as “very stressed”. In a similar US poll, 75 per cent were stressed and 25 per cent even more so.
For the majority of Aussie respondents, work proved the greatest source of stress - findings backed up by a report in the Medical Journal of Australia some years ago. And according to research by Medibank Private, the number of stress-related compensation claims from employees doubled between 1996 and 2004.
The next most pressing stress sources, reports the survey, are thoughts of the future, followed by finance, health and personal relationships.
And backing up comment from Executive Director of the Black Dog Institute psychiatrist Professor Gordon Parker at a UNSW brain sciences symposium last year that money does not buy happiness (or relieve much stress)[4], the Newspoll survery also found the most stressed households were those earning middle incomes.
As Lifeline spokesperson Chris Wagner explains: “Respondents living on middle incomes are some of the most stressed people we surveyed overall, with 95 per cent of respondents stressed, and 57 per cent very stressed… That means that middle income earners are almost 15 per cent more highly stressed than average. That’s a lot of high level stress that could result in health and wellbeing problems.”
The reasons behind the plight of this demographic (earning between $40,000 and $79,000 per annum) may be new mortgages and young kids and their associated pressures, he says.
And don’t leave Generation Y out of the mix: the survey found Aussies aged 25-29 the most stressed. Women also clocked marginally higher stress rates than men.
As Wagner says: “Our society does tend to put material pressures on the community and its people in their 20s and 30s, that [sic] are often the target for luxury items. So the disappointment associated with the inability to purchase them can add to stress levels. I hope that people realise that these material possessions do not make you happy, it’s the relationships you have and the connections you make with each other that are important. It is our friends and family who can help us manage and reduce stress.”
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