OVERVIEW

Harris Interactive conducted a tracking study on behalf of Modern Woodmen of America focused on family closeness and communication. The study results are based on interviews with 500 Americans between the ages of 25 and 65. The study was conducted by telephone using a random digit dial technique. Interviews were conducted between December 12 and December 27, 2002. The sampling error is plus or minus 4.4 percent at the 95 percent confidence level.

FINDINGS

Family Connections

Americans still strongly believe that it is good for children to know their relatives and family history (99% agree, compared to 98% in 2001).
Americans feel very strongly (96% agree, compared to 95% in 2001) that spending time with their immediate family is one of the most important parts of their lives.

The connection between Americans with children in their household and their extended family is noteworthy – 96% feel that spending time with extended family members is one of the most important parts of their life, compared to 79% of those without children.
As in the previous wave of the study (75%), more than seven in 10 (73%) Americans agree that it can be hard to stay in touch with family these days.

Family Gatherings

Americans are still spending holiday events, such as Thanksgiving or Christmas, with their extended family (93% have attended in the past three years, compared to 90% in 2001).
Women attend family gatherings more frequently than men. Over half (55%) of women attend family gatherings seven to 11 times a year or more often in a typical year, compared to two in five (40%) men.

The percentage of those attending informal get-togethers (88%), birthday parties (82%), or a wedding (70%) remains essentially the same as in the 2001 study.
Significantly more women (86%) than men (77%) attended a birthday party with extended family members in the past three years.
The percentage of those who attended a family reunion declined in this tracking study. In 2001, 58% of Americans said they attended a family reunion in the previous three years. In 2002, that percentage dropped to 53%.
There is a decline in the percentage of Americans who attended a school graduation in the previous three years. In 2001, 57% said they had attended a school graduation, while in 2002, only 51% indicated that was the case.
More than four in five (83%) Americans are interested in attending family gatherings with extended family members more frequently, which is up from 79% in 2001.
Nearly eight in 10 (77%) Americans attend gatherings with extended family at least three times a year. That is up from just over seven in 10 (72%) in 2001.

Family Communication

Americans are increasingly seeing the potential for the Internet to bring extended families together more frequently. Three in four (74%) Americans are interested in staying in touch with extended family via e-mail or onl