The McCrindle Blog

In 4 of 5 (79%) marriages, couples lived together before tying the knot. Interestingly, couples who did live together before getting married tended to be slightly older than those who had not lived together.

Australia sees an average of 332 weddings per day, with this figure rising to an average of 577 in October, the busiest month of the year, and down to 190 in June, the quietest month of the year!

Social rules and manners have been constantly changing and shaped, relative to the times and context. What is considered socially acceptable behaviour is highly malleable.

Looking at how social rules are taught by parents to their children, current times have seen an emphasis placed on 'stranger danger', being weary of adults that the child does not know. What is scary is that, children these days are also taught to be cautious of adults they do already know ('danger from within').

We teach children to be assertive rather than obedient. 

In our survey on manners, we found that nearly half of Aussie parents teach their kids only to listen to and obey adults whom they know.

Mark McCrindle's book Word Up is a lexicon of 21st century youth slang, an overview of the factors shaping language, literacy, manners, and social interactions, and a guide to bridging communication gaps. For educators, employers, leaders and parents who rely on technology and spoken and written communications to influence and engage across the generations, Word up is an invaluable guide. 

For more, check out 21st Century Manners:

Predictions made by futurists decades ago... by the late 1990s we would all be working from a home office, rendering parking problems and traffic jams a thing of the past! By the 2000s, thanks to the labour-saving devices in the office, we would only be working, on average, three-and-a-half days a week!

Demographics give us insight into the future of our nation and allow us to make some forecasts about what future generations might be like. 

Mark McCrindle's book The ABC of XYZ gives insights and practical strategies to help parents, teachers and managers bridge the gaps and engage with each generation. However, this book is more than a research-based reference work or valuable 'how to' guide - it is also a very interesting read with facts and lists to which members of each generation will reminisce. 

Beyond Z, Meet Generation Alpha: McCrindle Research

Did you know that nearly 1 in 3 (31%) of Australians won't use Aussie slang because they think it is unrefined and a bit 'ocker'? Similarly, 29% won't use it because they find it rude and offensive. So keep these stats in mind the next time you may feel an impulse to yell out "Aussie Aussie Aussie! Oi oi oi!”

Mark McCrindle's book Word Up is a lexicon of 21st century youth slang, an overview of the factors shaping language, literacy, manners, and social interactions, and a guide to bridging communication gaps. For educators, employers, leaders and parents who rely on technology and spoken and written communications to influence and engage across the generations, Word up is an invaluable guide.

"Gen Y-ers are not used to blunt and negative feedback.  At primary school sports carnivals even those coming last received a participation ribbon."

In this chapter of Mark McCrindle's 'The ABC of XYZ', Mark looks at the key strategies of motivating and communicating with the current and upcoming generations, particularly in the workplace setting.

For more excerpts from Mark McCrindle's books, head over to our Free Resources page!

At McCrindle Research, we have a wealth of resources we would love to share with the world! 

If you haven't already, check out our resources page! We have whitepapers, nifty downloadable A5's and excerpts from all of our published books. 

Best new is, they're all free to download.

So feel free to have a look around, download and share with your friends, employees and employers!

The seven year marriage itch, divorces in half of all marriages, our children living shorter lives due to obesity.

Are all, some, ANY of these frequently repeated statistics true? 

Mark McCrindle, Director of McCrindle Research sets out to debunk five of these commonly-held assumptions by Australians today!

For a full copy of the social analysis, please click here to download the 

Top 5 Demographic Myths Investigated.

Happy reading!

Australia’s population is ageing rapidly!  The Australian Government Intergenerational Report (2010) states that by 2050, older people (aged 65-84) are expected to more than double and those aged over 85 will more than quadruple.  

In just under forty years, in June 2050, almost one in four Australians (23%) will be aged over 65. 

Four decades ago, Australia’s population could aptly be described as a population pyramid.  Life expectancy tables were such that the population followed a linear pathway with more younger people and as you move up through the age groups, fewer older people (check out slide #4 below).

Today, Australia’s population pyramid has a distinctively rectangular shape, created by both increasing life expectancies as well as the massive Baby Boom generation entering their older years (slide #5). 

The workforce of 2050

The ratio of retirees to workers will double over the next four decades.  In today’s workforce, there is a ratio of 15 workers to 3 retirees!  By 2050, there will be 15 workers to 6 retirees.  As a result, there will be fewer people working to support an increasing proportion of older Australians. 

McCrindle Baynes Villages Census Report 2011

The McCrindle Baynes Villages Census Report 2011 was a comprehensive research project, involving the world’s largest quantitative census of retirement village residents combined with qualitative focus groups of non-residents and demographic analysis of the target cohort.

For more information about the Census Report, please contact McCrindle Research on (02) 8824 3422 or download the PDF summary.

In less than four months, Australia will break its next population milestone when we hit 23 million.

While this is a new record in Australia achieved in part through record birth numbers (now exceeding 300,000 per year), it represents just 0.03% of the global population. For many more demographic facts and population statistics, download our 2012 Population Map below. 

The times are changing faster than ever – technologically, demographically, economically.  More than ever before, it is imperative that organisations and leaders observe the changes, understand the shifts and respond to the trends.