Despite decades of social and economic change, a majority of Australians believe life was better 50 years ago, but experts say this may have as much to do with nostalgia as with living standards.

According to the Australian National University’s ANUpoll data, average life satisfaction is worse than it was during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Head of the ANU school of Politics and International Relations Professor Nicholas Biddle said, “Australia in March 2026 is a country under considerable strain.”

The report revealed average life satisfaction has fallen to 6.22, the lowest recorded in ANUpoll history.

Nearly three-in-five Australians think life was better 50 years ago and a similar proportion expects it to be worse in 50 years time.

Curtin University Associate Professor in Psychology Trevor Mazzuchelli says people have a tendency to view the past idealistically.

“The vast majority of respondents in the survey didn’t experience life 50 years ago, but when you think retrospectively, you tend to filter out the negatives,” he says.

“I think some of the reason people may feel like they’re worse off now is we tend to compare ourselves with others, so it’s not just the past it’s also the social comparison in the present.

“Both nostalgia and comparisons can misrepresent or give us a non-accurate picture as to our reality.”

Dr Mazzuchelli says we all tend to gloss over the bad parts of certain memories.

“To use an analogy, if you ever go on holiday and even if it’s a nice holiday, travelling is still hard, there are still inconveniences, but a year down the track, you think back to the holiday and forget all the inconveniences and discomfort and you just remember the highlights.”

“Nostalgia isn’t people remembering the past, they’re comparing today to a simplified story of a more stable time.”

Associate Professor Trevor Mazzuchelli

The March survey was taken by 3662 Australians, set against the war between the United States and Iran, the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the effect on fuel prices.

Dr. Mazzuchelli believes global uncertainty has contributed to the survey’s results.

“Humans don’t cope well with uncertainty, and there’s a lot of that.

“It’s often the case when we feel stressed or there seems to be uncertainty, we actually turn and consume more media and those strategies actually make the situation worse,” he says, “uncertainty keeps people in a constant ‘what if’, that’s more draining than a known problem. There’s always going to be some level of uncertainty, I think we need to learn how to cope with that,” he says.

According to the data poll more than a third of Australians are finding it difficult to keep on their current income.

UWA Economics Associate Professor Alison Peterson says inflation is well ahead of wage growth contributing to the financial stress felt.

“Wages have been stagnant since 2012, there’s been what we call a decoupling. In the past wages have moved with profits and we’ve been able to get a share of that profit.

“Teachers for example, used to be a relatively well-paid occupation, you could live off the income of one teacher’s salary. That just wouldn’t be possible today,” she says.

Dr. Peterson says despite possible magnification of the issue by the media and social media, economic data supports the poll’s results.

“I don’t know about 50 years ago, but in terms of looking at today’s window, the data backs it up.”

“I can see it when I look at the returns from having a degree today to in the past, the increase in salary relative to the people who don’t go to university just isn’t there.

“House prices have ballooned, wages are not keeping up with it, there’s insecure employment and then there’s a geopolitical crisis,” she says.