After a fairly dampened mood in June 2014, it

seems Australians are in the most positive mood

they’ve been in in 16 months.

Results from four Mood Monitors have shown the mood of

the nation can be influenced or attributed to a variety of

forces on a global, national and also personal level. Political

events such as elections and budget announcements – and

the resulting flow on effects they can have on an individual

household – play an important part in a person’s happiness.

What we have discovered is that while people may be

worried about global and broad issues such as terrorism and

economics, their happiness seems to be most influenced by

issues that affect them personally – such as the cost of

energy, healthcare and education. These issues ‘inside the

home’ appear to contribute greatly to moods – if they are

feeling pressure in these areas, their happiness decreases

and conversely if they are less worried about these issues,

they feel happier.

Let’s take a look…

This report has been segmented into various stages of life that may impact significantly on how the world is

perceived and the economic pressures felt.

Based on results from our previous studies, and this current one, we can ascertain the major influences on mood at the

time of each of our Mood Monitor studies.

Source : SCAR Consumer Sentiment Study, June 2013 & October 2013, June 2014 & October 2014 “When you think about your mood generally about your life, lifestyle, country,

economy etc, what ONE WORD would you use to best describe how you feel right now?’ June 2013 n=4066 October n=1128 June 2014 n=1434 October 2014 n=1689

Note: Calculated by considering positive verbatim responses as a percentage of all responses.

Tracking Australians’ moods over the past 16 months

has shown that moods certainly do fluctuate.

It would appear that the mood of the nation can be influenced or

attributed to a variety of forces on a global, national and also personal

level. Political events such as elections and budget announcements –

and the resulting flow on effects they can have on an individual

household – play an important part in a person’s happiness.

Source : SCAR Consumer Sentiment Study, October 2014, “When you think about your mood generally about your life, lifestyle, country, economy etc,

what ONE WORD would you use to best describe how you feel right now?’ n=1689 Free as a Bird N=275 Family Flock n=403 Empty Nesters n=268

Empty Nesters are

feeling the most

positive of all the

segments,

followed by the

Free as a Birds.

Each segment is

feeling more

positive now than

they did in June

2014.

39%

46%

42%

47%

37%

47%

37%

44%

38%

38%

45%

60%

% who are feeling positive at the moment

We asked Australians how they felt about their current life, lifestyle, country

and economy – and these are the words they gave us……

Source : SCAR Consumer Sentiment Study, October 2014, “When you think about your mood generally about your life,

lifestyle, country, economy etc, what ONE WORD would you use to best describe how you feel right now?’ n=1689

Overall, Australians are feeling positive – in particular content, happy and good.

But it also looks like they might be starting to feel a little tired as we head

towards the end of the year.

So, how has their mood changed in the past 6 months?

Once we asked people to choose from a selection of ‘moods’, happy and content still came out on top – with

positive taking third position. When comparing the moods with June 2014, it seems that people are feeling

considerably more content and happy – and a great deal less concerned.

In previous studies, pressures and impacts on households were very personal – an election, a change in government and a budget

that seemed to put more pressure on households. These impacts seem to have calmed down and broader global concerns are now

evident (such as terrorism), which seem to affect mood a little less – perhaps because it’s not quite as close to home.

Source : SCAR Consumer Sentiment Study, June 2014 & October 2014, “And just so we can narrow it down a little, from the

following list, which word or words best describes your mood at the moment?” June 2014 n=1422 October 2014 n=1689

All segments are predominantly feeling happy and content, with Empty Nesters being the

happiest.

Our June 2014 study found that Family Flocks were predominantly feeling concerned – and for many of them the

recently announced Federal Budget had them worried. Four months down the track and this seems to have calmed

down – and they are again feeling content and happy.

Source : SCAR Consumer Sentiment Study, October 2014, “And just so we can narrow it down a little, from the following list, which

word or words best describes your mood at the moment?” n=1689 Free as a Bird N=275 Family Flock n=403 Empty Nesters n=268

6% 9%

13% 20%

23% 23%

26% 29%

36% 36%

Angry

Pessimistic

Excited

Frustrated

Concerned

Optimistic

Anxious

Positive

Content

Happy

4% 6% 7%

21% 23% 23% 23% 24%

33% 34%

Angry

Pessimistic

Excited

Optimistic

Anxious

Concerned

Frustrated

Positive

Happy

Content

3% 4%

8% 14% 16% 17% 18%

24% 37%

41%

Angry

Excited

Pessimistic

Anxious

Frustrated

Concerned

Optimistic

Positive

Happy

Content

Source : Happiness Research Institute; Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, McLeod, S. A. (2007); SCAR Consumer Sentiment Study, October 2014 n=1689

For those that said their current mood was

happy, this happiness seems to be derived from

being grateful for what they have and being

aware that they are better off than other people

(locally and worldwide).

The reality of not needing anything else – as opposed to not

wanting anything else – has left people with a sense of

happiness. They have fulfilled their basic needs, and are

grateful for it.

As the Happiness Institute describes, happiness is derived

from relative wealth – a person’s wealth in comparison with

their ‘neighbour’ – rather than their absolute wealth.

Australians seem to have realised their wealth is greater

than that of other countries and are grateful for it. Indeed,

59% of Australians believe that the Australian economy is

doing better than most other countries in the world. It seems

to be an overall feeling of ‘we’re doing okay so we can’t

complain’.

In their own words…

Source : SCAR Consumer Sentiment Study, October 2014, “And just so we can narrow it down a little, from the following list, which word

or words best describes your mood at the moment?” n=1689 Free as a Bird N=275 Family Flock n=403 Empty Nesters n=268

Source : SCAR Consumer Sentiment Study, October 2014, “Thinking about your life overall, including your family, lifestyle,

country, economy etc, what ONE WORD would you use to best describe your MOOD right now? Why? n=1689

Not having enough money and work are key drivers of unhappiness for

Australians. In their own words…

Free as a Birds feel

consistently happy and

feel free of too many

worries in their life.

They’re positive because life is

going well for them at the

moment, they feel happy, work

is going great and there’s

nothing going wrong right now.

Family Flocks gain

happiness from their

family but feel the pinch

from financial pressures.

Their anxiety seems to be

increasing over time and their

frustration is slightly higher right

now compared with the past

year.

Empty Nesters are the

great worriers but are

kicking up their heels at

the moment.

This group is the most positive of

the segments and this appears to

be driven by a feeling of comfort

and security. They’re happy to live

life and enjoy what they have.

The Federal Budget

announced earlier this

year seems to have

caused some pressure

in June 2014 – and

subsequently topics

like healthcare, energy

and education were

worrying them.

It would seem now though

that whilst energy is still a

top concern, personal

safety is high on people’s

list of worries. 1 in 4

Australians is worried about

crime and violence and the

percentage of people

worried about future

terrorist attacks has

doubled since June 2014.

Source : SCAR Consumer Sentiment Study, June 2014 & October 2014 “How worried are you about the following things....?” Very Worried June 2014 n=1422 October 2014 n=1689

In each of our Mood Monitor reports over the past 15 months we have seen that Australians are quite

concerned about energy.

This issue has consistently been in the top 3 worries. Interesting to note though is that although energy is the top worry for

Australians right now, the percentage of people worried about it is much lower than previous Mood Monitors. This may suggest

that the availability and affordability of energy is certainly a top concern for Australians but they may be getting used to it.

Source : SCAR Consumer Sentiment Study, June 2013, October 2013, June 2014 & October 2014, “What impact has the rising cost of ENERGY prices had on your

household?” Major Impact June 2013 n=4063 October 2013 n=4056 June 2014 n=1422; October 2014 n=1689 Free as a Bird N=275 Family Flock n=403 Empty

Nesters n=268; October 2014 “How do you feel about the following statements? My power bill will probably go down now the carbon tax has been rescinded” n=1689

39% 38% 32% 40%

% of people that

believe energy

prices have had a

‘major impact’ on

their household.

Family Flocks are

feeling the pressure

of energy prices

most at the moment.

22% 41% 33% Are different lifestages

affected by different

concerns?

Source : SCAR Consumer Sentiment Study, June 2014 & October 2014, “How worried are you about the following things....?” Very worried June 2014 n=1422

Free as a Bird N=251 Family Flock n=349 Empty Nesters n=237; October 2014 n=1689 Free as a Bird N=275 Family Flock n=403 Empty Nesters n=268

Whilst each lifestage share common worries such as availability and affordability of energy, future

terrorist attacks and crime and violence, there are some worries unique to a stage of life.

Free as a Birds have primarily concerned with unemployment and education, Family Flocks are really feeling worried about

issues that might affect their way of life and their children, and Empty Nesters are concerned about healthcare. Empty

Nesters certainly seem to be more worried about things than the other segments.

19%

19%

20%

22%

26%

Availability andaffordability of energy

Crime and violence

Quality and availabilityof eductaion

Future terrorist attacks

Unemployment

21%

24%

25%

25%

26%

Drugs

Illegal immigration

Future terroristattacks

Crime and violence

Availability andaffordability of energy

26%

27%

28%

29%

31%

Illegal immigration

Healthcare

Availability andaffordability of energy

Crime and violence

Future terroristattacks

Source : SCAR Consumer Sentiment Study, June 2013, October 2013, June 2014, October 2014 “What impact has the rising cost of food prices had on your household?” June

2013 n=4056 Free as a Bird N=745 Family Flock n=1386 Empty Nesters n=500; October 2013 n=1131 Free as a Bird N=249 Family Flock n=288 Empty Nesters n=141; June

2014 n=1422 Free as a Bird N=251 Family Flock n=395 Empty Nesters n=237; October 2014 n=1689 Free as a Bird N=275 Family Flock n=403 Empty Nesters n=268

The impact of grocery prices

appears to have lessened

over the past 15 months. It

would appear that prices are

still a concern for people but

it’s almost as if they’re

getting used to it.

Certainly Coles and Woolworths

have tapped into this concern about

grocery prices with their advertising

campaigns of ‘Down, down, prices

are down’ and ‘Cheap Cheap’.

Historically, consumer sentiment can plummet at budget

time and this year’s budget has certainly had that result in

Australia. Our June 2014 Mood Monitor showed a positivity

score equal to that from June 2013. Four months on and the

mood of the nation appears to have turned around

significantly – with the highest positivity score and

happiness we have seen in 16 months.

Whilst Australians have pressures and concerns in their lives, most have

recognised again that Australia isn’t doing it too bad. The country’s ‘relative

wealth’ (wealth in comparison with others) is recognised and people feel

grateful for what they have. As we’ve discovered, there seems to be a

correlation between people’s happiness and the things worrying them on a

personal level. Those things that hit a bit closer to home such as cost of

living and services, cause Australians to feel less happy. On the contrary,

whilst Australians might be worried about broader issues like terrorist

attacks and crime and violence, it doesn’t affect their personal happiness.

They’re concerned about them but still feel happy in their part of the world

and with their life.

It will be interesting to see whether this happier mood continues on and if it

has a positive effect on retail results for the busy Christmas period.

The survey was conducted by Southern Cross Austereo using its online

panel nationally.

The panel is obtained from our radio networks database under the

labels of ‘VIP’ on the TODAY Network and ‘Music Jury’ on the MMM

Network. All members of these databases would be considered listeners

to these stations.

The database contains about 246,000 members. Of these,

approximately 15,000 are a part of our online community.

The is split between the Today VIP database and the Triple M database.

Members of the Triple M Network database were asked to take part in

the study, and over 1100 did so.

Additionally, 500 external respondents were recruited to complete the

survey. Members of this database have no knowledge of Southern

Cross Austereo’s involvement and aren’t necessarily listeners to either

network.

Certain questions asked for an ‘essay’ or ‘verbatim’ type of response

OR brands/words that first came to mind.

A keyword search was used to sort and rank the responses to these

questions.

The results are an un-weighted sample, but are reflective of the

Southern Cross Austereo Austereo audience. SCA brands reach

approximately 40% of the 10+ population and approximately 46% of

the 25-54 population in the five metropolitan markets in Australia,

suggesting it would be reasonable to consider these results to be a fair

if not fully balanced representation of the opinions in these

marketplaces.

Furthermore, as it is an online survey, the respondents would also be

skewed towards being ‘early adopters’ for technology, ‘trend setters’ in

general and likely to be a good early indication of brand leaders, trend

setters and early adopters in general.

These research surveys conducted by Austereo are done so to provide

a general understanding of the opinions, interests and attitudes of the

metropolitan marketplaces only.