Global clocks may be in synch, but 'time' is measured differently around the globe (page 1 of 2)

In fact, between two-fifths and three-fifths of adults in leading industrialized nations rate themselves as "time poor" . That's not so in the developing countries of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), where people are more likely to find they have too much time on their hands, according to the latest survey data .

In the United States, 44% of men and 42% of women feel "time poor"; in the U.K., it's 37% percent of both men and women. Among Australians, 49% of men and 45% of women feel short of time, and in the Netherlands, the figures jump to 59% of men and 61% of women. Adding to the sense of pressure in these countries is a feeling that they are not just time poor, but also cash poor. Survey respondents who consider themselves in the enviable position of being "cash rich, time rich" account for just 12% of men and 10% of women in the U.S. sample, 8% of men and 7% of women in the U.K., 8% of men and 9% of women in Australia, and 12% of men and 8% of women in the Netherlands.

The surveys, commissioned by JWT, took respondents through a series of questions about their use of time and how they would like to spend it differently. It seems the world would be in better shape if time were to become more available: Substantial proportions of respondents in all four developed markets said they would be in better physical condition if they had more time. That includes 38% of men and 39% of women in the U.S., 35% of men and 45% of women in the U.K., 47% of men and 60% of women in Australia, and 32% of men and 33% of women in the Netherlands.

In stark contrast to JWT's findings in industrialized countries, a separate, smaller-scale survey carried out by AMRB across Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Lebanon found that people had little desire for extra time. In fact, a widespread preoccupation was not about finding the time to do things, but, rather, about finding things to do to fill one's time. Whereas the enemy in the developed world is overwork and stress, in MENA, its boredom.

"There's a striking difference in the way people in industrialised countries experience time compared with our respondents here in the Middle East and North Africa—although, of course, there are exceptions in both places," said Marian Salzman, EVP of Strategic Content at JWT. "From observation, anecdotal evidence, and our surveys, it's clear the 'time poor' feeling is

growing all over the world. But from the Middle East and North Africa survey, the signs are that people here feel they have too much time on their hands rather than too little. This has major implications for marketers.

The survey shows that the time squeeze of modern living is leaving many people feeling they don't spend enough time with the people who matter to them. In the developed-markets surveys, respondents were given a notional "time wallet" of 1,000 currency units (dollars/pounds/euros) to be spent on a range of listed activities. High up on the spending priorities of most respondents was "spending quality time with your kids, members of your extended family, or friends." It was the top item in the U.S., U.K., Netherlands, and Australia (98, 91,106, and 143 currency-minutes were devoted to it, respectively). Once again, this contrasts with the Middle East and North Africa region, where people are inclined to spend less time with their nearest and dearest, not more. Most MENA respondents are aware of time dragging during social calls or when visiting relatives as part of their social obligations. Yet they are also concerned that if they spend less time doing the family rounds, they will not have an alternative activity to occupy their time.

"The differences look very sharp, but it may well be that people in industrialised countries and the MENA sample are merely at different places on the same continuum.