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June 17, 2005
Thirteen Year-Olds Say Life Is Harder
By Tara Merry
Two-thirds (67%) of thirteen year-olds believe that it is harder being a teenager today than when their parents were teens, according to a Time Online Poll of 501 emerging adolescents nationally.
These teens are also negative about where the country is heading, with just under half (46%) saying that the United States will be a worse place to live when they reach their parents' age.
- Less than one quarter (22%) have a positive outlook, saying that the United States will be a better place to live when they reach their parents' age.
U.S. Be a Better or Worse Place to Live Compared to Now? |
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Total (%) |
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| Better Place to Live | 22 |
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| Worse Place to Live | 46 |
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| About the Same as Now | 32 |
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Most Teens Report Strong Relationships With Parents, Teachers, and Peers
Despite teens' negative future outlook, they report overwhelmingly positive
relationships with the adults in their lives and their peers, with little signs
of teen rebelliousness, at least not yet. These thirteen year-olds report:
- strong relationships with their parents - nine out of ten rate their relationship with their parents as excellent (53%) or good (37%).
- a high level of parental involvement in their lives, with nine out of ten saying that their parents know just about everything (53%) or most (37%) of what goes on in their life. Most even seem to welcome the parental involvement they have.
More than two-thirds (68%) rate the level of involvement their parents have in their life as "about right," a percentage that is even higher among those who say their parents are very (71%) and fairly involved (74%) in their life.
Friendships are particularly important to these thirteen year-olds. Virtually all (97%) rate their friendships positively (excellent or good). Teens also say they get along well with their teachers (81%) and classmates (82%). Only relationships with brothers and sisters are rated lower; less than three quarters of teens who have siblings rate their relationship as either excellent or good (71%).
Career Aspirations Differ Greatly By Gender
Their career aspirations are quite varied, and only about one in seven (14%) say they are not sure what
type of career work they would choose if they had to decide now. The careers mentioned most often vary
greatly by gender: males are more likely to say they want to be an athlete (14%), scientist (10%), or
work with computers (9%); while females are more likely say they want to be a doctor (11%), teacher (10%),
musician (8%) or lawyer (7%).
Total(%) |
Males(%) |
Females(%) |
|||||
| Athlete | 8 |
14 |
2 |
||||
| Medical Doctor | 7 |
3 |
11 |
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| Scientist | 6 |
10 |
3 |
||||
| Computers | 6 |
9 |
2 |
||||
| Teacher | 6 |
1 |
10 |
||||
| Musician | 5 |
2 |
8 |
||||
| Lawyer | 5 |
2 |
7 |
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| Other | 43 |
46 |
41 |
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| Not Sure | 14 |
13 |
16 |
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Few Consider Volunteering for Military
Only 13% say that they expect to volunteer for the military. Males (17%) are twice as likely as females
to consider volunteering (8%). Very few men (7%) or women (1%) plan a military career at this point.
Few Give Their Schools an "A" Grade
Only one quarter (26%) give their school an "excellent" or "A" rating overall, but 45% grade their
schools a "good" or "B" rating. More than 1 in 4 (28%) give their schools fair or poor grades.
- Just over one-third say their teachers hold their interest ("describes them a lot," 36%) or care about them personally (37%).
About one in four say there's too much pressure in school (29% "describes school a lot") and that school is boring (25%). Teens report spending nearly 9 hours a week on average studying and doing homework during the school year.
How Do Thirteen Year Olds Spend Their Free Time?
These thirteen year-olds report spending much of their free time - just over 13 hours a week on average
- listening to music on the radio or on CDs / MP3s.
- Their favorite music types are Rock (62%), Pop (54%), Rap (44%) and Hip Hop (43%).
Watching television is a close second, averaging 13 hours per week. Spending time with friends (10 hours per week) and playing video games (8 hours a week) are also popular activities.
- The Internet is also used heavily by this group, at an average of 9 hours per week - 4 hours of which is spent instant messaging.
Teens spend only about half as much time playing sports or exercising (7 hours a week) as watching television or listening to music, and even less time reading books or magazines (4 hours per week).
A Majority of Thirteen Year Olds Report Having Some Source of Money
Nearly three quarters (73%) of surveyed thirteen year-olds report having some source of money. Just over
half (53%) receive an allowance from their parents, receiving an average of $13 a week. Half also report
having a part-time job that pays them money either during the school year (32%) or during the summer (48%).
- Those who hold part-time jobs report earning $25 a week for school-year jobs and $47 a week for summer jobs on average.
So what do thirteen year olds spend all their money on? The most common expenditures reported are food, snacks, and candy (63%), music (56%), video games (48%), clothes (45%), and going out to movies, concerts, or events (43%).
Teens' Political Views Generally Mirror Parental Views
More than one-third (36%) of surveyed thirteen year olds are unsure of their own political stance, but a
majority of those who have an opinion report their political views are about the same as their parents
(72%). Although about one-third (34%) are unable to categorize their own political views on the
conservative - liberal dimension, their views are somewhat similar to adults -- 26% categorizing their
political views as moderate, 19% as conservative, and 22% as liberal.
Religion Is an Important Influence
Religion is clearly an important factor in the lives of thirteen year-olds. More than two-thirds say
religion is very (31%) or somewhat important (38%) in their daily life. Nearly half (47%) say they attend
religious services at least almost every week. A similar percentage (51%) also believes that the Bible
is the actual word of God and every word should be totally believed, a statement with which fewer than
one in five disagreed (17%).
Views about sex before marriage expressed by thirteen year olds also tend to align with religious tenets. A majority of thirteen year olds think that people should wait to have sex until they are married (60%), while just over one quarter (27%) say it is not necessary to wait until marriage.
Teens Think They Should Be Able to Start Dating Before Parents Think They Should, Although Most Agree Thirteen is Not Old Enough
Teens say they should be able to start dating at ages 14 - 15 (mean age=14.7 years). Their parents on
average think they should be 16. (mean age of 16.4 years). However, only three in ten (30%) thirteen
year olds say they should be dating by their current age, suggesting that many thirteen year olds do not
feel ready to date yet. Only one in four report that they have started dating already (25%).
Girls To Start "Going Out" Together? |
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What Teens Think (Mean Age in Years) |
What Parents Think (Mean Age in Years) |
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| TOTAL | 14.7 |
16.4 |
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| Males | 14.8 |
16.3 |
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| Females | 14.5 |
16.4 |
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Methodology
This Time Magazine Poll of thirteen year olds nationally was designed by Schulman, Ronca, & Bucuvalas,
Inc. Public Affairs. Interviewing was conducted via the Internet June 10-15, 2005 using a nationwide
Harris Interactive Online sample. A total of 501 interviews were conducted.
The margin of error for the entire sample is approximately +/-5 percentage
points. The margin of error is higher for subgroups. Surveys are subject to other
error sources as well, including sampling coverage error, non-response bias,
recording error, and respondent error.
The full Time questionnaire and trend data may be found in the related link
below.
Related Link
