••• health care research
Americans not alone in their loneliness
Gen Z loneliest generation?
Most American adults are considered lonely, according to results from a national survey exploring the impact of loneliness in the United States released by health service company Cigna.
The evaluation of loneliness was measured by a score of 43 or higher on the UCLA Loneliness Scale, a 20-item questionnaire developed to assess subjective feelings of loneliness as well as social isolation. (The UCLA Loneliness Scale is a frequently referenced and acknowledged academic measure used to gauge loneliness.)
Nearly half of the more than 20,000 U.S. adults ages 18 years surveyed report sometimes or always feeling alone (46 percent) or left out (47 percent). One in four (27 percent) rarely or never feel as though there are people who really understand them. Two in five sometimes or always feel that their relationships are not meaningful (43 percent) and that they are isolated from others (43 percent). One in five people they rarely or never feel close to people (20 percent) or feel like there are people they can talk to (18 percent).
Americans who live with others are less likely to be lonely (average loneliness score of 43.5) compared to those who live alone (46.4). However, this does not apply to single parents/guardians (average loneliness score of 48.2) – even though they live with children, they are more likely to be lonely. Only around half of Americans (53 percent) have meaningful in-person social interactions, such as having an extended conversation with a friend or spending quality time with family, on a daily basis.
Generation Z (adults ages 18-22) is the loneliest generation and claims to be in worse health than older generations. Social media use alone is not a predictor of loneliness; respondents defined as very heavy users of social media have a loneliness score (43.5) that is not markedly different from the score of those who never use social media (41.7).
The survey also revealed several important bright spots. The findings reinforce the social nature of humans and the importance of having communities. People who are less lonely are more likely to have regular, meaningful, in-person interactions; are in good overall physical and mental health; have achieved balance in daily activities; and are employed and have good relationships with their coworkers.
More specifically – and expectedly – the survey showed that people who engage in frequent meaningful in-person interactions have much lower loneliness scores and report better health than those who rarely interact with others face-to-face. Getting the right balance of sleep, work, socializing with friends, family and “me time” is connected to lower loneliness scores. However, balance is critical, as those who get too little or too much of these activities have higher loneliness scores.
Those who say they work just the right amount are least likely to be lonely – the loneliness score of those who work more than desired increases by just over three points, while those who work less than desired showed a six-point increase in loneliness. Not surprisingly, those who report working less than desired are less likely to report having feelings associated with being less lonely (e.g., feeling outgoing and friendly, there are people you can talk to, etc.), compared to those who work more than desired.
••• CX research
Is your customer in the process of ghosting you?
Study looks at customer defection styles
Companies invest billions each year in expensive customer service programs, sales forces and sophisticated discounting programs such as Groupon to lure and retain customers only to find that churn remains one of their biggest and most expensive challenges. According to a new study, customers have a tendency to send clear signals before they break up with a company but you have to know what to be monitoring and the key to any relationship remains effective communication.
The study, Some Customers Would Rather Leave Without Saying Goodbye, published in the INFORMS journal Marketing Science, is co-authored by researchers from Columbia Business School and London Business School.
The study analyzes hybrid settings, where a customer could leave the service either by canceling their account/unsubscribing or by stopping interacting with the service. Firms operating in these settings face two different types of churners: overt churners, who inform the firm about their disengagement with a company; and silent churners, who tend to fade away more quietly simply by not making repeat purchases.
The authors analyzed customer behavior in two different (hybrid) contexts: a daily deal Web site and a performing arts organization. They separated overt churners from silent churners to understand and predict both types of churn and then explore possible levers to better manage the customer base.
“We have consistently found that overt churners tend to interact more, rather than less with a firm prior to disengaging with that firm,” said the authors. “This means that they will open e-mails they receive and read communications from a company but it can be a mistake to assume that simply because a customer is engaged, he or she is satisfied and will not leave.”
In turn, the research found that while overt churners may engage with the firm by opening e-mails and reading them, they rarely click on links in the e-mails, which suggests that the content is not perceived as valuable to them. “We have found that once a customer transitions into the ‘silently gone’ state, the firm is highly unlikely to reengage the customer using previously used communication methods,” said the authors. “However, a more proactive and customized communication reduces the possibility that certain customers will leave silently.”
••• science research
Not much of an impact
3M study charts attitudes towards science
Science needs a champion. This is the conclusion St. Paul-based manufacturer 3M has come to following analysis from its first annual State of Science Index (SOSI), a global study exposing the general population’s attitudes towards science.
At first glance, results from the study suggest sentiment towards science is overwhelmingly positive: half of respondents believe flying cars will become a reality within their lifetime and 87 percent characterize science as fascinating, not boring.
However, upon further inspection, the survey reveals many people are unaware of the impact science has on their lives: almost 40 percent believe everyday life would not be much different if science did not exist (38 percent). A pattern of skepticism around science also prevails. The study found that almost one-third (32 percent) of the global population is skeptical of science and 20 percent distrust scientists.
The independent, 14-country State of Science Index was commissioned by 3M and conducted by researcher Ipsos to explore the image of science around the world. Respondents were asked about their knowledge, understanding and appreciation of science, as well as questions about the image and future of science.
For many, science is seen as being accessible only to “geniuses.” The study found more than one-third of people are intimidated by science, with 36 percent agreeing only geniuses can have a career in science.
More work needs to be done to address the gender gap in science. Women are less engaged with and interested in science than men. They are more likely than men to say they know nothing about science (21 percent vs. 15 percent) and are significantly less likely to believe a career in engineering would be satisfying (9 percent vs. 25 percent). Women, however, are more interested than men in medicine (20 percent vs. 14 percent) and life science (15 percent vs. 10 percent).
Science is appreciated more on the macro, societal level, than the micro, everyday level. Significantly more people believe science is very important to society in general (63 percent) than it is to everyday life (46 percent).
People have great expectations for science. About three in four believe science can solve different global challenges inspired by the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. Globally, people are optimistic that science can solve challenges related to access to affordable renewable energy (75 percent) and energy supply (74 percent). People are also turning to science to solve challenges related to disease treatment (75 percent), clean water and sanitation (73 percent) and Internet access (73 percent). But confidence in science to solve the following global challenges is much lower: climate change (46 percent), hunger (45 percent), aging population (41 percent) and unemployment (33 percent).
People are largely unaware of science and its impact on their lives. The majority (66 percent) think about the impact science has on their everyday lives “a little to never.”
Nearly half the population wishes they had pursued a career in science. While a small majority of people (54 percent) have no regrets about pursuing a non-science career, nearly half wish they had chosen a career in science (46 percent).
Science skeptics and science supporters are unified with respect to their kids and the next generation. When it comes to the next generation, science skeptics and non-skeptics are surprisingly aligned: 82 percent would encourage kids to pursue a science career and 92 percent of parents want their kids to know more about science; at the same time, 33 percent think students need a better understanding of how science improves the world to inspire them to pursue a career in it.
Despite skepticism and a general misunderstanding about science, excitement for the future of scientific advancements is high. When asked about what they believe science will achieve in their lifetime, the top responses included robots in every workplace (64 percent), robots in every home (55 percent) and flying cars (51 percent). Additionally, there were expectations for undersea living (41 percent) and inhabiting Mars (35 percent), all within our lifetime.
Overall, the study found that emerging countries are more optimistic about future scientific advancements than respondents from developed countries. Emerging countries are much more likely to think flying cars (58 percent emerging vs. 43 percent developed) and controlling the weather (43 percent vs. 22 percent) would be possible in their lifetime.
Full study data, including individual country breakdowns across 14 countries and the ability for individuals to explore the data further can be found at 3M.com/scienceindex.
Ipsos conducted the study of 14,036 adults across 14 countries between June 14, 2017 and August 26, 2017. The survey was fielded through a combination of online and offline interviews. Approximately 1,000 people aged 18+ were surveyed in each country. Countries included in the study: Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Japan, Mexico, Poland, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, United Kingdom and the United States. The sample for each country was nationally representative based on age, gender, region, and race/ethnicity (where applicable). At the 95 percent confidence level, the margin of error for the 14-country global total is +/- 0.83 percentage points. Emerging and developed countries were grouped in the following way: developed – Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Singapore, United Kingdom, United States; emerging – Brazil, China, India, Mexico, Poland, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, South Africa.
••• leisure research
Book readership holds steady
Audiobooks gaining in popularity
Americans are spreading their book consumption across several formats, and the use of audiobooks is rising, reports Pew Research Analyst Andrew Perrin.
About three-quarters (74 percent) of Americans have read a book in the past 12 months in any format, a figure that has remained largely unchanged since 2012, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted in January. Print books remain the most popular format for reading, with 67 percent of Americans having read a print book in the past year.
And while shares of print and e-book readers are similar to those from a survey conducted in 2016, there has been a modest but statistically significant increase in the share of Americans who read audiobooks, from 14 percent to 18 percent.
Overall, Americans read an average (mean) of 12 books per year, while the typical (median) American has read four books in the past 12 months. Each of these figures is largely unchanged since 2011, when the Center first began conducting the surveys of Americans’ book reading habits.
Despite some growth in certain digital formats, it remains the case that relatively few Americans consume digital books (which include audiobooks and e-books) to the exclusion of print. Some 39 percent of Americans say they read only print books, while 29 percent read in these digital formats and also read print books. Just 7 percent of Americans say they only read books in digital formats and have not read any print books in the past 12 months. Some demographic groups are more likely than others to be digital-only book readers but in general this behavior is relatively rare across a wide range of demographics. For example, 10 percent of 18-to-29-year-olds only read books in digital formats, compared with 5 percent of those ages 50-64 and 4 percent of those 65 and older.
Interestingly, there are no significant differences on this question related to educational attainment or annual household income. Some 7 percent of college graduates are digital-only book readers, compared with 5 percent among those who have not graduated from high school.
Demographic differences in book reading in 2018 are similar to the patterns seen in previous Pew Research Center surveys. For instance, college graduates are more likely to be book readers than those who have not attended college and younger adults are more likely to read books than those 65 and older. At the same time, some groups have become more likely to read books in certain formats than was true in 2016. Some examples include:
Younger adults. Nearly one-quarter (23 percent) of 18-to-29-year-olds have listened to an audiobook in the past 12 months, compared with 16 percent who had done so in 2016.
College graduates. The share of college graduates who have read a print book or listened to an audiobook in the past 12 months has increased by 6 and 7 percentage points, respectively, since 2016. Notably, the share of high school graduates who have listened to an audiobook in the past 12 months has nearly doubled over that same time frame, from 9 percent in 2016 to 16 percent today.
Rural adults. Adults living in various community types are equally likely to listen to audiobooks. But 17 percent of those living in rural areas have listened to an audiobook in the past 12 months, up from 10 percent in 2016.