The ability to take better selfies be damned - seven in ten people say they find selfie sticks annoying
Whether you’re walking past Big Ben, the Eiffel Tower or the Brandenburg Gate, there’s one thing around popular sight-seeing destinations the world over you can’t help but notice – tourists taking their photos on a selfie stick. Despite their now abundance at tourist sites around the world, it’s hard to believe that selfie sticks have only really been around for about two years now.
Love them or hate them, selfie sticks have thoroughly penetrated the public consciousness – new YouGov research finds that as many as 95% of British adults know what a selfie stick is. Despite the high levels of awareness, though, just 15% of people have ever used one.
As you would expect, younger people are much more likely to have used them than older people – 31% of 18-24 year olds and 24% of 25-34 year olds have used one, whilst just 7% of those aged 55 or over have done so.
Selfie stick use is highly infrequent though. Of those people who have ever used a selfie stick, just 5% use them at least once a week. Interestingly, an identical survey run by YouGov Germany found this figure was as high as 18% there.
Despite the more dedicated user base in Germany, public attitudes towards selfie sticks in the two countries are broadly similar – that is to say, negative. Seven in ten people (71%) find selfie sticks embarrassing and 70% find them annoying. Eight in ten people dismiss the selfie stick as a fad, with 64% saying they are a waste of money. A mere 9% of people believe that they are stylish.
Photo: PA
