Research released today reveals that 67 percent of parents name the family vehicle as a convenient place to have a meaningful conversation with their children, according to a study by Chrysler Groupand Harris Interactive(R).
The survey also found that nearly 70 percent of parents spend most of their time outside of the house with their children in the family vehicle (67% mentioned the family vehicle as one of their top three places). Survey results show that families spend an average of 1.3 hours in the car every day and take an average of 5.3 road trips per year. Overwhelmingly, parents sometimes or often use this time to talk to their children about school (91%), friends (90%) and values (82%).
Chrysler Group issued the study as part of its support for Family Day -- A Day to Eat Dinner with Your Children, in a partnership with the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University. Family Day, which takes place on every fourth Monday in September -- the 27th in 2004, encourages parents to make time to talk and listen to their children. According to CASA, families that practice good communication, whether it be in a vehicle or at the dinner table, are more likely to have children that are substance free.
""... today's family is juggling a more hectic schedule than ever before, and a greater number of parents are using time spent in the family vehicle to discuss important topics with their children," said Christine MacKenzie, Vice President, Corporate Research and Reporting - Chrysler Group.
The Chrysler Group/Harris Interactive study was fielded online by Harris Interactive among 1,895 parents or legal guardians of children five years and older who own or lease a vehicle. In addition to time parents and children spend in the family vehicle, areas investigated include topics of conversation, family activities while traveling in the family vehicle and common obstacles they face when attempting to have a quality conversation with a child.
"The study reveals the changing dynamic of family time," said Laura Light, Research Director of Public Relations Practice at Harris Interactive. "The research ... shows that families are taking advantage of the time spent together in a vehicle to open the lines of communication with their children."
Other Findings
- Almost one in two (49%) say they spend a lot of time in their family vehicle
- Other subjects parents sometimes/often discuss with their children in
their family vehicle are:
- 81 percent talk about extra-curricular activities such as sports or music lessons
- 69 percent discuss chores
- 65 percent talk about lifestyle or health issues, such as drugs, alcohol, or sex
Methodology
Harris Interactive(R), via its QuickQuery(SM) online omnibus, fielded the 13 question survey on behalf of Chrysler Group. The online study was conducted among a nationwide sample of 1,895 U.S. adults including 808 men and 1,087 women 18 years of age or older.
The data were weighted to be representative of the total U.S. adult population on the basis of region, age within gender, education, household income, race/ethnicity and propensity to be online. Interviewing for this omnibus survey was completed during the period June 11 through June 16, 2004.
The sampling error for the total sample is plus or minus 1.5 percentage points. The sampling error for those answering the children and cars question is plus or minus 2.3 percentage points.
CASA
The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University is the only national organization that brings together under one roof all the professional disciplines needed to study and combat all types of substance abuse in all sectors of society. CASA's missions are to: inform Americans of the economic and social costs of substance abuse and its impact on their lives; assess what works in prevention, treatment and law enforcement; encourage every individual and institution to take responsibility to combat substance abuse and addiction; provide those on the front lines with the tools they need to succeed; and remove the stigma of substance abuse and replace shame and despair with hope.
