Buying Less, American Consumers Find That Experience Matters

The results of a New York Times/CBS News poll suggests that while Americans have cut back on their spending, they are seeking more experiences. Respondents to the survey said that they are spending additional time with family and friends, gardening, cooking, reading, watching television and engaging in other hobbies. These findings match recent box-office takings: the movie industry experienced one of its best weekends over the Holidays 09 period. Experiences are worth more than things apparently, the NY Times reports:

“It’s a different kind of recession,” said Richard Florida, the author of several best-selling books about the economics of cities. “It’s not like in the ’30s when people stopped going to concerts. Now people seem to be keeping up with experience consumption and cutting back on other necessities.”

Psychologists have been saying for years that shared experiences like vacations lead to more long-term happiness than the latest bauble. And perhaps the change was inevitable — to be expected when a shopping-spree nation trades a glut of credit for layoffs and furloughs…

Many young people, experiencing their first economic downturn, are also making different choices. Megan Stallings, 25, an investment analyst in Raleigh, N.C., said she first learned to value experiences while studying abroad in college, when the dollar was weak and trips brought her better memories than souvenirs. Now, she said, she spaces out her shopping trips to preserve time for activities.

New York Times: In Recession, Americans Doing More, Buying Less