4102.0 - Australian Social Trends, 1999  
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 18/06/1999   
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MEDIA RELEASE

June 18, 1999
Embargoed: 11:30 AM (AEST)
69/1999

Australian social trends to be released 24 June

The Australian Bureau of Statistics will release the sixth edition of the annual Australian Social Trends 1999 publication (cat. no. 4102.0) on Thursday 24 June.

This 216-page report profiles contemporary Australian society, looking at the changes in the nation's social conditions and wellbeing over recent times. There are 31 new analytical reviews on topics such as population, family, health, education, work, income and expenditure, housing, and culture and leisure. These contain story material of immediate and future interest.

This alert is to aid your planning and research by giving you advance notice of the release of this major publication.

There are many possible stories which may be used including some that focus on the wellbeing of older people in 1999, the International Year of Older Persons. A full list and a synopsis of all the articles may be found on this website, or can be sent to you by fax on request.

While a media release with some summary information will be widely distributed, the publication itself will be boxed at the Canberra Press Gallery by request only. However, the publication will also be made available on the day of release for collection through our state offices in each capital city, again by request. Electronic copies are also available to those able to access acrobat attachments via e-mail systems.

To arrange access to your copy of Australian Social Trends 1999 or obtain the synopsis, please contact client.services@abs.gov.au


Australian Social Trends 1999: list of contents

Population Chapter

Our ageing population - discusses past and projected population trends (in particular, the post-war baby-boom generation), and possible implications for Australian society.

Languages spoken in Australia - provides information on leading languages, changes between the 1991 and 1996 Censuses, geographic distribution and indicators of language maintenance.

Indigenous languages - gives an overview of the main languages spoken, the numbers of speakers, their location, and indicators of language maintenance.

Island populations - presents demographic and socio-economic characteristics of the populations of 15 of Australia's islands, such as the Cocos (Keeling), Torres Strait, Norfolk and Flinders Islands.

Family Chapter

Spending time alone - looks at how much time people in different age groups spend alone and which groups of people are at most risk of social isolation.

Looking after the children - examines the time parents spend with their children, the types of childcare activities they undertake, and how patterns differ between mothers and fathers.

Caring for children after parents separate - looks at current living arrangements, contact with natural parent, and child support for children whose parents are separated.

Remarriage trends of divorced people - examines the growth in remarriages of divorced people and the age differences between remarrying brides and bridegrooms.

Health Chapter

Health of older people - gives a range of health indicators including health-related risk factors, illness, disability status, and mortality rates.

Health and socio-economic disadvantage of area - outlines differences in health status and health behaviours according to socio-economic status of area.

Asthma - discusses prevalence in 1995, the actions people took in relation to their asthma, smoking and asthma, and trends in mortality.

Mental health - examines the prevalence of the more common mental disorders, by sex and age, in 1997.

Education Chapter

Educational profile of Australians - provides a picture of the levels and fields of study of post-school educational qualifications held by people aged 15 and over, using 1996 Census data.

Destination of school leavers - looks at the choices made by school leavers: that is, whether to find a job, continue their studies, or both.

Educating and training Australia's workers - presents information about the involvement in, and access to, education and training courses by wage and salary earners.

Work Chapter

Decline of the standard working week - examines changes in hours worked per week between 1988 and 1998, by age, sex, occupation and industry.

Men and women wanting work - examines under-utilised labour by profiling three groups: the unemployed; those who work part-time but would like to work more hours; and the marginally attached.

Older jobseekers - shows how older jobseekers are less successful than younger ones in finding work, and that the jobs they find tend to be less favourable, in a number of respects, than jobs held by others of the same age.

How couples share domestic work - focuses on couples in which the partners work similar hours. It looks at differences between men and women in time spent on domestic work and in the types of tasks undertaken.

Income and Expenditure Chapter

Income sharing and income distribution - shows how income inequality varies, depending on which assumptions are made about income sharing.

Lower income working families - examines basic characteristics of low income working families, including labour force status, occupation, family size and age.

Economic resources of older Australians - looks at the level and sources of income of Australians aged 65 years and over.

Expenditure on gambling - examines the recent growth in legalised gambling in Australia, including differences in State and Territory patterns of expenditure and participation.

Housing Chapter

First home buyers - examines the trends in home ownership among young Australians and their current housing choices.

Home care, hostel and nursing homes - looks at the assistance received by the majority of people aged 65 years or more who live in private dwellings. The small proportion who live in hostels or nursing homes are also examined.

Rental investors - investigates who invests in what type of residential rental properties.

Inner city residential development - gives an overview of housing trends in the inner city areas of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, using 1986 and 1996 Census information.

Culture and Leisure Chapter

How Australians use their free time - examines some of the factors, such as life-cycle stage and labour force status, that influence how much free time we have and how we use it.

Interests in the arts and cultural activities - focuses on patterns of attendance at cultural venues, participation in arts and cultural activities, numbers of people working in cultural jobs, and those training to be artists.

Sporting Australians - examines the most popular sports played by children and adults. It also examines other involvements (such as coaching and refereeing, or attending matches as a spectator).

Information technology in the home - discusses how patterns of computer ownership and usage vary for different households and between the States and Territories.