Recession Dents Consumer Purchases

CU360
June 5, 2009 | COMMENTS

The "Great Recession" is changing our perceptions about many items formerly regarded as necessities. From the kitchen to home entertainment, Americans are paring down the list of familiar household appliances they say they can't live without, according to a survey by the Pew Research Center, reported in USA Today.

Less than half (47%) of survey respondents say a microwave is a necessity today, down from 68% in 2006. And 52% say a television is a necessity today, down from 64% in 2006. Appliances such as a dishwasher or clothes dryer are now considered more discretionary. Only 21% (down from 35%) say a dishwasher is a necessity, and 66% say the same for a dryer (down from 83%). The car still tops the list for both years (88% today; 91% in 2006).

Pew researchers also asked about how much Americans' lives have been affected amid the struggling economy. Twenty-seven percent say they or someone in their households had lost a job or had been laid off in the past year, 80% have cut back spending, and 20% say they're doing more work in and around their homes.

"Regardless of age, gender, education and other social or economic characteristics, the change in attitudes toward consumer goods has occurred quickly and broadly," according to the report.

Technology, however, is considered nearly indispensable: Cell phones and high-speed Internet access are as necessary or more necessary as they were three years ago. About half (49%) of those surveyed say cell phones are a necessity, the same as in 2006. But high-speed Internet picked up two percentage points, to 31%.

One factor may be that the lines between work and home are blurring, says Stephen Sweet, associate sociology professor at Ithaca (N.Y.) College. He says many employees are expected to be reachable anytime, work at home when necessary, and sometimes bring children to the office.

No one is predicting the end of our materialistic society. "But there has been a small trend toward being more introspective about materialism and consumption," according to the report.

Similar results on changing consumption patterns are reported in Time magazines's American Thrift poll, part of a series titled "The New Frugality."