Study: Patience waning in digital age

WASHINGTON — In an age of instant gratification, the victim appears to be our patience.

A new survey from the group, Interparcel in the United Kingdom, found that people are becoming more impatient in the last five years. One-third of the study’s participants said they have no patience at all, Stylist.co.uk reports.

The survey determined Brits’ threshold for patience in different situations.

On average, people will wait 10 seconds for a web page to load, 16 seconds for a video to buffer and five minutes to get served in a bar. Also, the survey found people are losing their cool after 13 minutes in traffic or waiting for a bus.

Of the 2,000 Brits polled in the survey, three quarters of them said they believe the Internet has made us more demanding. Also, more than half say their free time is more scarce, so they are pickier than ever about how it is spent.

Below are results of the survey with the average time that our patience lasts:

  • Waiting for a web page or link to load – 10 seconds
  • Waiting for a video to buffer – 16 seconds
  • Waiting for a drink at a bar – 5 minutes
  • Phoning a utility or large company – 8 minutes
  • Queuing for train tickets – 9 minutes
  • Being kept on hold for doctors – 9 minutes
  • Queuing to post a letter- 10 minutes
  • Putting up with a screaming child in a restaurant – 10 minutes
  • Delayed train – 13 minutes
  • Sitting still in traffic – 13 minutes
  • Waiting for a bus – 13 minutes
  • Buying music tickets online – 17 minutes
  • Date running late – 17 minutes
  • Friend saying they’ll call you right back – 18 minutes
  • Waiting for food at a restaurant – 24 minutes
  • Waiting for a friend to text back – 18 hours
  • Hearing from someone after a date – 2 days
  • Waiting for a parcel to be delivered – 4.5 days
  • Man waiting for partner to get ready – 27 minute

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Sarah Beth Hensley

Sarah Beth Hensley is the Digital News Director at WTOP. She has worked several different roles since she began with WTOP in 2013 and has contributed to award-winning stories and coverage on the website.

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