The Department for Children, Schools, and Families in the UK wanted to understand better how teenagers felt about free time activities. This group is normally very difficult to communicate with, so the Department tried the innovative approach of running a survey on the Blyk mobile network which focuses on youth, and has recently launched a market research product.
(From our recent interview with Shaun Gregory, CEO of Blyk UK.)
More than 3,500 16 to 19 year olds responded to SMS questions, and confirmed that teenagers are tired of being labeled as lazy, and in reality want to do more positive things with their free time.
Some of the results from the survey included:
Almost three quarters (72 per cent) of today’s teens would rather be involved in positive activities such as football, dance, going to the gym, music and martial arts. 90 per cent of 16 to 19 year olds admitted spending much of their time hanging out at home or with friends due to a lack of opportunities in their local area. Almost one in ten (8 per cent) already use their leisure time to take on part time jobs, with a further 16 per cent keen to do the same. The survey also asked what are the most popular activities for teens:
Most popular activitiesPopular non-traditional activities
WorkVolunteering/Community Work
FootballBoxing
DanceGo Karting
GymMartial Arts
Music / SingingIce Skating
SwimmingParkour / Free Running
