Mind & Matters

Released 3 October 2024

Emotions

Positive emotions bounce back

Encouragingly, the dip in positive emotions observed last wave has reversed. As spring approaches, New Zealanders are starting to feel more upbeat, with hope and optimism once again ranking top two in August (51% and 45% respectively) having returned to more normal levels.

Similarly, the proportion of New Zealanders feeling anxious or frustrated has declined for two consecutive months. However, we’re still quite stressed. While down from its March peak, stress rose slightly this month in contrast to the fall in other negative emotions.

• Hopeful: ranking first place in August, it has seen a 6% increase since July.
• Optimistic: has seen an increase of 4%.
• Stressed: has slightly increased (+2%) after a drop in July.
• Motivated: another positive emotion that increased in August (+3%).
• Frustrated: remained the same at 38%.
• Anxious: positively, continues to decline (-4%) after the high in June.

Breakdown by gender

Stress remains a more significant issue for women in New Zealand, viewed over time women have consistently been more likely to have experienced stress and anxiousness than their male counterparts; with anxiousness amongst men trending down. Conversely, women show an increased likelihood for experiencing the two leading positive emotions, optimism and hope, and in recent months have been more likely to experience these than men.

Breakdown by age

Younger New Zealanders continue to feel stressed and anxious. Positively though, younger generations are starting to feel more hopeful (+11% since July), with this being their top emotion in August. Older generations remain more likely to feel positive emotions overall, with hope and optimism increasing since July (+6% and +2% respectively).

*Shift from July to August

Breakdown by household structure

Now looking at New Zealand households, positive emotions like hope and optimism are seen in both household structures (childless and with children at home). In August, these positive emotions are stronger in households with children, with them both showing big increases since July.

However, those who have children living at home are more likely to feel stressed (48% vs 35% for childless households), while childless homes are more likely to feel anxious (38% vs 24% for those with children at home).

*Shift from July to August

Outlook

New Zealanders’ 12-month outlooks becoming increasingly polarised

Recent months have seen an increase in the proportions of both positive and negative outlooks, and a decline in those expecting things to remain the same. Since January 2024, the proportion of those expecting things to get better has risen from 36% to 38% overall, with a high of 43% in April. However, those expecting things to get worse have shown a more persistent trend, rising from 15% to 21% in the same period. This negative disposition has been most consistent among those aged 55-64 years, and in this most recent wave, also included those not working, but not retired, i.e. unemployed, home duties, students, etc.

New Zealanders aged 18-44 are the most likely to feel optimistic about the next 12 months, with 47% of them having a positive outlook. Similarly, households with children living at home share this positivity with 55% of them feeling this way compared to only 24% of childless households.

Older generations (65+ years) remain the most likely to believe things will stay ‘about the same’, with over half of them feeling this way (56%).

Comments behind New Zealanders’ 12-month outlook

Direction

Perceptions of the country’s direction worsens

Reflecting the worsening personal outlook for the next 12 months, the proportion of New Zealanders who believe the country is going in the wrong direction has reached a new high in August (61%). Meanwhile, just 39% feel things are moving in the right direction, falling to its lowest level of the year.

There are marked regional differences in opinion, with Auckland evenly split on whether the country is heading in the right direction. In Wellington, two-thirds of the population think the country is moving in the wrong direction (+12% since July). This pessimism is even more pronounced in Canterbury and Otago, where 1 in 5 share this negative outlook, with a marked +10% increase this month (70-80% negative).

Comparing the North and South Islands, people on the North Island are generally more positive (41%) than those on the South Island (31%).

Additional differences are consistent with our emotion and 12-month outlook findings: men are more positive (45% vs 33% for women) as are households with children (44% vs 35% of childless households).

There are clear political differences shaping these opinions. For the 39% of New Zealanders who feel the country is heading in the right direction, over half attribute this sentiment to the current government (59%). Key themes mentioned include the implementation of new policies, efforts to reduce wasteful spending, tax cuts, changes to the benefit system, and a focus on improving education and crime prevention. Many also expressed optimism about the improving economy and a slowdown in inflation, with some also noting the decline in interest rates.

In contrast, for those who believe things are going in the wrong direction, 57% of them attribute this to the current government and the decisions they are making. This is followed by the cost of living, with some comments also highlighting the high interest rates.

Wellbeing

Wellbeing at work

When it comes to wellbeing in the workplace for full-time workers, the most popular practice is flexible working hours with half (50%) saying their workplaces offer this option. Following that, 42% can work from home at least once a week. However, it's interesting to note that 31% mentioned their workplaces don’t provide any of these practices.

Firmographic splits:

• Workplace size: Employees at companies with fewer than 50 employees are less likely to receive these benefits, with 40% indicating they do not receive any benefits, compared to 26% who don’t in larger businesses.
• Role: Unsurprisingly, those in senior/managerial roles are more likely to have these benefits (71%) compared to those who are employees with no managerial responsibilities (63%).

Personal wellbeing

Less than half of New Zealanders (46%) have made changes to their lifestyle to enhance their mental or physical wellbeing in the past month. Among those who have made changes, the most common approach is increasing physical activity, with half of them engaging in regular exercise. Additionally, 27% reported focusing on healthier eating habits, and 26% made changes to improve their mental wellbeing with key themes including counselling and having more ‘me time’.

Finances

New Zealanders’ expenditure habits

These were the top five categories that made up New Zealanders’ household expenditure in August:

1. Food and groceries (97%)
2. Gas/Electricity (81%)
3. Telephone, Mobile, Internet (79%)
4. Private vehicle costs (70%)
5. Vehicle insurance (59%)

These top five categories are consistent across different household structures. However, life insurance and mortgage were significantly different between childless households and those with children at home.

Cost of living and inflation

Cost of living is having less of a direct impact on New Zealand households

August saw a fall in the proportion of New Zealanders having to cut back their spending or rely on a credit card/savings for essentials, which are now at their lowest levels since January. At the same time, there’s been a corresponding increase in those unaffected or simply needing to be conscious of their spending, with both rising to their highest levels this year.

Demographic splits:

• Gender: Women remain more likely to cut back on what they buy (35% vs 23% for men) and men are more likely to say that inflation is not having any effect on their household (18% vs 8% of women).
• Employment status: Unsurprisingly, those unemployed/retired are more likely to cut back on what they buy (39%) than those who are employed (24%).
• Household structure: childless households are more likely to cut back on spending (35%) than those with children living at home (20%).

What is Mind & Matters?

Mind & Matters is designed to help business and leaders better understand public sentiment. From macro trends to behaviours and attitudes towards key interest areas, such as such as job security, personal finance, mental health, the environment and more, Mind & Matters is your comprehensive check-in on the state-of-mind of the New Zealand public.

Why we're running this tracker?

In April 2020, in the midst of a pandemic lockdown, Perceptive and Sapien built the first Covid-19 Tracker to help businesses and leaders better understand the hearts and minds of Kiwis as we experienced this unprecedented event.

Fast forward to 2023 and the world—and New Zealand—continues to experience change on multiple fronts, from rising inflation to the rise of eCommerce and generative AI. With this in mind, Perceptive and Sapien have taken the best of our Covid-19 tracker produce this comprehensive tracker that explores what Kiwis think, feel and believe in relation to some of the most topical and challenging issues of today.

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