TEG survey suggests most Australians expect 'normal life' to resume within six months

41% of Australians believe life will “go back to normal” within six months while a third think the return to normality will take between six months and 12 months, according to TEG Insights & TEG Analytics’ first weekly COVID-19 Sentiment Tracker.

The survey of a representative sample of more than 500 Australians reveals a profusion of insights into the nation’s thoughts and feelings about the growing pandemic, including how our political leaders and the live entertainment industry have handled the crisis thus far.

Tellingly, TEG Insights & TEG Analytics’ COVID-19 Sentiment Tracker shows that Australians are more concerned about the impact of the coronavirus on their loved ones and the community than themselves.

While 63% of Australians are concerned that they will be infected, 83% are concerned others close to them will be infected and 89% are very concerned or somewhat concerned about the spread of COVID-19 in the community.

The survey reveals that 66% Aussies approve of the way our political leaders across the country have handled the crisis thus far. Local GPs and live event organisers garner the highest approval rating in terms of their response to the outbreak - at 90% and 83% of respondents respectively - but social media attracts the most disapproval, at 63% of respondents.

COVID-19 is the issue that most Australians are worried about (89%) - with nearly a quarter of respondents being “very worried” - followed by money (78%). COVID-19 is also the issue with the highest level of concern.

Two-thirds of Australians favour a complete lock down of the country in response to the coronavirus outbreak even though four in ten are worried about being self-isolated with 13% very worried at the prospect.

Government and medical advice about ways to reduce the risk of coronavirus, including health and hygiene and social distancing practices, appear to be cutting through to most people, with respondents reporting the following changes in behaviour:

• 84% are shaking hands less
• 75% are washing hands more
• 68% have increased use of hand sanitizer
• 59% are staying at home more

Commenting on the results, Andrew Reid, General Manager of TEG Insights and TEG Analytics, stated “we are glad that we are in a position to offer these unique insights into how the country is thinking about what many are calling the greatest challenge we have faced as a nation since World War Two.

“We will be updating the COVID-19 Sentiment Tracker every week for our clients and asking new and bespoke questions to deliver them insights to help them and their people navigate this most difficult time.”

TEG Insights is a leading online research business, providing access to over 1 million consumers across Australia and New Zealand, for market segmentation, behavioural data and insight generation.

TEG Analytics is one of Australia’s leading data analytical and data science businesses with one of the largest customer databases in Australia and more than 16 million unique customer records.

* The survey sample is nationally representative by age, gender and location with a total sample size of 527 respondents.