Testing the Relative Constancy of Mass Media Expenditures in the United Kingdom

This study tests the hypothesis of relative constancy in the United Kingdom, applying regression techniques to a series of consumer mass media expenditures from 1963 to 1989. The analysis confirms a long-term constancy of mass media spending, regardless of variations in disposable personal income and the passage of time. During the entire 27-year period, U.K. consumers spent a relatively stable share of their disposable personal income on mass media. A separate analysis of data from 1980 to 1989 also reveals that they devoted an increasing share of their income to mass media in the last decade, largely because of the introduction of video hardware and software.