"Mobile Snacking" and Work/Life Balance
No author cited
Palm Canada and Leger Marketing, May 2007
Available
online (abstract in PowerPoint)
According to a Palm Canada/Leger Marketing study, tech-savvy "30-to-50-somethings" are active consumers of wireless entertainment, grabbing quick nibbles of fun time throughout a hectic work day – a trend the study refers to as "mobile snacking."
Three in five (60 percent) respondents surveyed consider themselves "always on" between family and work commitments. The same amount say that communication technology is key to balancing personal and professional commitments.
More than half of the Canadian professionals polled credit technologies such as cell phones and PDAs for keeping them connected at work, and one in five (20 percent) say they rely on an "all-in-one" device such as a smartphone to balance their social and professional lives.
And according to the study, it isn't all about email. Almost half (45 percent) also use PDAs, cell phones and laptops to unwind in their leisure time. In fact, 44 percent of people surveyed use their mobile device to listen to MP3s, one in five (19 percent) check out videos, and 10 percent admit to checking updates on social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace.
The study portends that trends such as mobile snacking appear to be the result of working extended hours and adopting mobile lifestyles. Working beyond the traditional 9 to 5 workday is not uncommon for Canadians; over a quarter (27 percent) surveyed admitted to working 10 hours a day or more.
Some "Fast Facts" from the study along the lines of career commitment include:
The online survey was conducted for Palm Canada by Leger Marketing from April 13-18, 2007, with a representative sample of 1,000 male and female professionals between the ages of 30 and 54 who are familiar with and use mobile technology.
Abstract courtesy Environics Communications.