Australians are obsessed with cleaning, attacking bite-sized chores while working from home and watching more TV as a way to share time with others, according to new research.
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The study, conducted by Samsung, explores the common trends in homes throughout the country, and the behaviours and attitudes which continue to evolve the more time we spend at home. And it uncovered a house-proud nation obsessed with cleaning.
"Our daily routines have changed over the last twelve months and our homes will be never be the same," said Jeremy Senior from Samsung Australia. "For most, home is a safe haven. It's where we stay connected, our classroom, our office and our cinema/entertainment hub.
"Our latest research reveals Australians have become more obsessed than ever with cleaning and decluttering. We have updated our appliances to be more efficient and with our change in daily routines we have adopted chore snacking - doing smaller more frequent cleans rather than saving-up lots of tasks for the weekend.
"As a house proud nation, seven in 10 have said that having a cleaner home provides a barrier of comfort and safety, as we declutter and dial up cleaning their spaces, surfaces and air in the home."
Obsessed with cleaning
Of those Australian surveyed, one quarter have changed their cleaning routine in the past year as they adapt to more time living and working at home. Almost one-third now consider themselves obsessed with cleaning (29 per cent), while 34 per cent do a deep clean at least weekly and 64 per cent clean their home daily.
Having a clean home makes three in four people feel less stressed, while seven in 10 said a clean home makes them feel safe.
New routines
Stress has been reduced from tireless chores thanks to the aptly named chore snacking. Sixty per cent admit they are doing smaller, more frequent cleans of the home each day, helping them feel on top of the cleaning and giving them more time back at the weekend.
Working from home has also allowed more than half of those surveyed to catch up on chores and feel more in control: 22 per cent wash dishes, 18 per cent vacuum and 24 per cent admitted to doing more laundry during work hours or lunch breaks.
A return to the traditional
With chore snacking alleviating time pressure on weekends, a quarter of Australians are turning to the kitchen as a form of relaxation, while mealtimes have become increasingly important as a time to reconnect with loved ones.
Sixty one per cent also admitted they would rather have a good home cooked meal than go out for dinner, and two in five said they are cooking more meals from scratch in the past 12 months.
Given more time at home, many Australians are finding comfort and entertainment in pastimes enjoyed by generations: one in two tried their hand at knitting, cross stitching, embroidery, crochet, jam making or baking, with 56 per cent of Australians doing at least one of these in the past 12 months.
Enjoying spending time together (and apart)
Thirty four per cent of those surveyed said they watch television to share time together with others, while 69 per cent prefer to watch movies with others.
The research also revealed the average household has three television sets, and while the primary purpose of telly in the living room is to spend time with others, 46 per cent retreat to the bedroom to watch - indeed, 31 per cent reported to have a TV in the bedroom where they unwind and watch their own shows without interruption or judgement.
