Australians fancy themselves as outdoorsy types, but now some interesting insights: results compiled from an online quiz show that Aussies rank as intrepid explorers as opposed to armchair adventurers.
According to intriguing results from The Great Aussie Survival Quiz, Aussies actually do see themselves as seasoned survivalists like Dundee, rather than concrete jungle connoisseurs. The findings revealed that 78% of all respondents were ranked in the top three ‘survival score’ categories. They ranged from those confidently seeking open-air exploits during downtime, to others who felt competent outdoors in legitimate survival situations. On the other hand, a mere 22% of participants considered themselves comfortable in the urban settings only.
The quiz was devised by Lifebroker.com.au, an online portal to compare life insurance policies offered by some of Australia’s leading providers. It set out to discover the ‘survival score’ of the average Australian and reveal the true state of the Aussie psyche. The test was based around the notion that survival – including living longer or beating the odds – is likely higher for those who have broader skills and experience, to combat whatever life might throw at them.
The Australian landscape is renowned for its treacherous natural environments, as well as experiencing life-threatening weather events. It also has the dubious honour of playing host to a frightening array of the world’s deadliest creatures. The great white shark, brown snake, saltwater and freshwater crocodiles, box jellyfish and funnel-web spider are all notorious inhabitants. We also have colossal cockroaches!
No surprise then that Australians have garnered a reputation for being fearless. The six multiple-choice quiz questions asked 34,564 Australian participants to choose their level of exposure to the region’s deadliest creatures and environments. Test subjects were further asked to describe their lifestyle choices and survival skills, when it comes to the outback.
For instance, what bush tucker could you stomach? Or, what is the most extreme place you’ve been swimming? Quiz-takers scored a result out of 100 to reflect their overall ‘survival IQ’ in the Australian outdoors.
At the top-end of the scale, 22% of people were impressively classed as a ‘Fully Fledged Outback Expert’. A further 32% were rated in the second-highest category as an ‘Intrepid Explorer’. Another 25% of respondents were deemed a ‘Weekend Warrior’, in the middle of the range. Only 17% saw themselves classified as a ‘Concrete Jungle Connoisseur’, while 5% filled out the lowest-scoring tier as an ‘Armchair Adventurer’.
Do you think of yourself as a survivalist? You can see how you measure up by taking the Great Aussie Survival Quiz for yourself!
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