Regional Differences with Working from Home and COVID-19 Hardships

In this installment of The Sample Landscape, EMI explores some of the societal changes occurring due to COVID-19, specifically the differences by region. We broke down the United States into four regions – Northeast, Midwest, South, and West. 

While respondents in all regions indicated they are working from home more, those in the Northeast region work from home more frequently than any other region. Respondents from the Midwest had the highest response for not working from home at all, which could be due to the higher prevalence of manufacturing in the Midwest.

When we asked respondents about working from home and communicating with their families, we found that the Midwest is the leading region in communicating with family neither more nor less. However, the majority of respondents reported communicating with friends and family via digital platforms more than usual.

The Midwest is also the leading region in browsing social media more than normal during the past month. Additionally, watching television is the activity that most respondents have reported doing more than normal, with 68% or more of the respondents indicating so.

The data also shows that the Midwest region reported being the most static in their likelihood to buy from locally owned businesses and restaurants based on current circumstances. They were also least likely among other regions to shop locally less.

If you missed any earlier installments of our COVID-19 blogs or The Sample Landscape, you can find links to them below:

COVID-19:

• COVID-19 and its Impact on Market Research
• Healthcare Research in the Time of COVID-19
• Response Rates in the Time of COVID-19
• COVID-19 and Gender

The Sample Landscape:

• Political Climate
• Vaccinations and Minimum Wage
• To Vote or Not to Vote