Older Australian’s are renowned for their resilience in times of crisis and it appears as though a large part of this attitude comes down to wishful thinking.
Despite the well-known risk that COVID-19 poses to older people, the latest polling results published by The Essential Report shows that 74% of Australians over the age of 55 think that they are unlikely to contract the virus.
Younger people on the other hand actually appear to be more fearful, with two-thirds of participants aged 18-34 sharing that they felt it was likely that they would become infected.
Survey results also showed that Australians over the age of 55 were more likely to feel that the Australian Government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic has good – when compared to the views of younger people.
But overall, more than half of the people who were surveyed (63%) believe that the Australian Government has done a good job of handling the crisis.
The top concern for respondents aged 18-34 was their financial position, with 40% of people in this age bracket stating that the prospect of losing their job was very concerning.
People in this age bracket were also more likely to be concerned about the impact of COVID-19 on their mental health than people of other ages.
According to polling results, it appears as though older people are actually coping with the mental aspect of being physically isolated better than any other age group, as people over the age of 55 are less concerned about physical isolation than younger people.
The youngest age bracket (18-34) was much more likely to have engaged in online activity in an attempt to combat feelings of isolation, but results show that this group of people are more likely to be struggling with feelings of isolation more than any other age group.
Although all age brackets shared a similar level of concern regarding the impact of COVID-19, people over the age of 55 appear to be more optimistic than other age groups – especially when it comes to their own personal health.
Photo Credit – iStock – Goodboy Picture Company
