If you’re the parent of a teenager, chances are you’re concerned about how much time they’re spending on their phone or computer.
If you’re that child, you’re probably sick of hearing Mum or Dad fuss over how much time you spend looking at a screen.
It seems like a never-ending debate with no clear winner, but data collected by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) over the last decade might just change that.
According to the ABS, more Australians aged between 15 and 24 were participating in sport or physical recreation twice a week or more in 2012 than they were in 2005.
Men aged 18 to 24 have steadily increased their participation since 2005 from 26.9 per cent to 45.5 per cent, and women of the same age group make up an even larger percentage at 48.2 per cent.
The same cannot be said for men and women of the 15 to 17 year age group, whose participation has decreased since 2009 despite earlier growth.
More recent ABS data shows similar trends in young people’s habits attending cultural venues such as art galleries and musicals.
Compared to 2009, there’s been an increase of more than 160,000 people aged 18 to 24 years old attending museums in 2018.
Younger Australians, however, have made less trips to these cultural venues – with the exception of theatre performances.
Of course, we can’t ignore just how much young people love technology, but it’s important to reflect on exactly how these devices are used.
Unsurprisingly, ABS data from 2017 shows most young Australians use the internet for social media and entertainment, but a large portion of them require it for other needs as well.
Around 78.6 per cent of people 15 to 17 years old said they used the internet for formal educational activities, and 39.4 per cent used online banking.
Australians aged 18 to 24 years old used the internet less for education but more so in every other area, with 42 per cent of them saying they accessed health services online.
Featured image: Katie Martin
