Viacom International Media Networks, home of Nickelodeon, today released the Australian findings of its latest global research study, KIDS OF THE WORLD.
The study, which included a survey of nearly 1,000 Australian and a total of 6,000 kids aged 6-11 from 30 countries, along with in-depth video ethnographies in 11 countries, found that almost 90 percent believe they can accomplish anything if they work hard enough.
KIDS OF THE WORLD also revealed that kids today embrace a fearless attitude towards life, despite growing up in fluid times full of uncertainty and change: 81 percent of Australian kids surveyed also believe it’s better to try things and risk mistakes than never trying at all.
This fearlessness fuels a desire to save the world. Ending wars around the world is the top problem that kids want to solve globally (61 per cent) along with ending world hunger (58 per cent). Bringing happiness to the world (58 per cent) was the top problem Australian kids wanted to tackle, followed by ending wars around the world (56 per cent) and finding a cure for cancer (52 per cent).
More Australian kids view themselves as highly independent than the global average (82 percent vs. 76 per cent), but they are equally curious (89 per cent) and creative (89 per cent). Some 94 per cent of Australian kids feel happy, nine percentage points higher than the global average, and they list their top five sources of happiness as: spending time with family (75 per cent), spending time with friends (60 per cent), going away on holiday (53 per cent), having lots of free time for fun and relaxation (49 per cent) and watching TV shows (43 per cent).
This mentality extends to the way Australian kids are consuming information and entertainment – with watching TV and playing games on a phone or tablet among their top four ways to relax. This appetite for content breeds curiosity and creativity: nearly 70 per cent of 6-11 year old Australians claim to use more than one device at a time, with 83 per cent using their free time to build new skills including sports, learning new languages and even learning to make slime.
Feeding kids’ empowered attitudes toward the world is their support system of family, friends and pets. Both in Australia and globally, family is cited as their number one source of happiness. Aussie kids have an average of four best friends, and 60 per cent said their best friend is someone in their family. And kids consider pets as more than playmates: they’re someone they can confide in and share their secrets, and a core part of their family.
“We wanted to learn how today’s fast-paced, changing world is shaping kids’ attitudes, experiences and behaviors,” said Christian Kurz, senior vice president of global consumer insights at Viacom.
“We spoke with thousands of kids directly and discovered from KIDS OF THE WORLD that kids today are positive and excited by the countless possibilities ahead, and they are embracing life with a fearless attitude.”
While almost 90 per cent of kids globally believe “I can accomplish anything if I work hard enough,” Australia is one of only five countries where less than 80 percent of kids agree. Australian kids are also slightly less confident (77 per cent vs. 86 per cent globally), optimistic (75 per cent vs. 86 per cent globally) and positive (80 per cent vs. 85 pe rcent globally).
“Just like their global peers, Australian kids are as supported, equipped and fearless. And while they are amongst the most happy, they do feel less confident, positive and optimistic when it comes to shaping their own future,” said Kirsty Bloore, vice president of research for Asia Pacific at Viacom International Media Networks. “Like all of our consumer insight studies, the Australian findings from KIDS OF THE WORLD remind us how important it is to know and understand our audiences and let these findings inform our content and marketing.”
Christian Kurz 