THE RECESSION is heavily affecting people's lifestyles, with more than a third cutting back on essentials like electricity and home-heating, according to the results of an Irish Times/Behaviour Attitudes opinion poll.
A large number (36 per cent) say they have cut spending on electricity over the past year, as well as home-heating (33 per cent) and mobile phone use (27 per cent).
Most people are trying to avoid cutting back on basics such as medicine and health insurance. However, many have already had to make sacrifices in this area.
Significant numbers – almost 400,000 people – are spending less on family medicine (11 per cent of respondents) over the past year, as well as health insurance (10 per cent), GP visits (16 per cent) and dental appointments (18 per cent).
A breakdown of the figures indicates that people from higher and lower income groups are cutting back on their spending in almost exactly the same way. Even with essentials like home-heating and electricity, people from both lower and higher income groups are cutting back at a similar rate.
Those most likely to be spending less are younger people. People in the 25- to 34-year age group were spending less on day-to-day expenses than all other age groups.
The findings are contained in a poll conducted by Behaviour Attitudes between October 12th and 26th last among a national quota sample of 1,004 adults at 100 sampling points across the State.
The recession is also having a strong effect on people’s social lives. People are much less likely to eat out (55 per cent), visit the pub (48 per cent) or go on family trips involving expenditure (39 per cent).
Instead, many are entertaining at home more than they did a year ago (23 per cent) and spending less on items such as the gym, cinema or takeaways.
Again, it is young people who are most likely to be cutting their spending in these areas.
For example, almost 70 per cent of those in the 25- to 34-year age group have cut back on eating out.
When it comes to seeking support in these difficult times, people are turning mainly towards their family and friends.
Just over half turn to their partner or spouse for emotional reassurance or comfort, while many also confide in female family friends (42 per cent) or in male family friends (35 per cent).
A total of 14 per cent turned to the Catholic Church. Some 32 per cent of over-65s turn to the church, compared to just 4 per cent of those aged 18 to 34.
A total of 6 per cent said they had nowhere to turn. Men (8 per cent) were twice as likely as women (4 per cent) to feel that they were on their own.
