CHAPTER 3 WHAT WE DO WITH OUR TIME: THE RHYTHM OF DAILY LIFE

OUTLINE

Measuring time use

Increasing free time across life span

An average day in the USA

Working by employed persons

Household activities

Care of children by adults in households with children

Leisure activities

Measuring time spent at work

How we spend our time

The amount of free time over one’s lifetime continues to increase

From specialist to generalists

PROLOGUE

What is time?

Nonmorden concepts of time thought of time as cyclic-consisting of daily, monthly, and seasonal rhythms of the natural world. The rising and setting of the sun, the fluctuations of tides,

the moons stages, and seasonal changes were the measures of time around which tribal life was based. Time couldn’t be lost under such concept because it would come again

The transformation of concepts of time from cyclic to linear is wrapped up in changes in religious belief. Both Jews and Christians came to believe that history was

not just a series of events but a progression from a well-defined beginning to an appointed goal or end.

TIME

The mechanical measurement of time , which has been measured by clocks since the thirteenth century, helped the linear concept of time.

Mechanical measurement of time pave the way for industrialization and splitting the day into segments of work and leisure

Today, computer is the new time-allocating device.

Computer programs predetermine how the future will unfold and control the sequence, duration, tempo, and coordination of activities. The computer differs from clock as a teller of time.

Computer time is a mathematical abstraction which separates us from the natural world.

MEASURING TIME USE

It is very difficult to determine how people actually spend their time.

People’s psychological or inner sense of time is often at variance with the mechanical measurement of time.

How people measure their time may vary especially when people are enjoying their leisure activities report less leisure time

INCREASING FREE TIME ACROSS THE LIFE SPAN

Where business has succeeded, people can consider satisfying noneconomic needs.

Half of the expansion in wealth-production capacity was used to create leisure time by cutting the hours worked while steadily increasing pay

AN AVERAGE DAY IN THE USA

The American Time Use Survey found in 2006, persons in the United States, ages 15 and over

Slept about 8.6 hours

Spent 5.1 hours doing leisure and sports activities

Worked 3.8 hours

Spent 1.8 hours doing household activities.

The remaining 4.7 hours were spent in a variety of other activities, including eating and drinking, attending school, and shopping

Only 45% of all persons ages 15 and older reported working during an average day because some were not work on their diary day

AN AVERAGE DAY IN THE USA-CONT.

Persons employed full-time who worked during an average weekday spent

9.3 hours working

7.6 hours sleeping

3.0 hours doing leisure and sport activities,

0.9 hours doing household activities, and

3.2 hours spent on other activities, such as eating, drinking, and shopping

WORKING BY EMPLOYED PERSONS

Many people work during weekdays than weekend.

84% employed persons worked on an average weekday

Employed person work an average 7.6 hours during weekday, they work 5.4 hours on weekend

On the day they worked, employed men worked about one more hour than women

Employed women living with a child less than 6, worked one half hours less per day than women living in households with no children

HOUSEHOLD ACTIVITIES

On an average day in 2006, 84 percent of women and 65 percent of men spent some time doing household activities such as housework, cooking, lawn care, or financial and other household management

Women spent 2.7 hours and men spent 2.1 hours

20 percent of men reported doing house work-such as cleaning or doing laundry-compared with 52 percent of women

CARE OF CHILDREN BY ADULTS IN HOUSEHOLDS WITH CHILDREN

In household with the youngest child age 6 or under, time spent providing primary childcare with average 2.3 hours by women and 1.1 hours by men

Physical cares, playing with children and travel related to childcare accounted most of the time spent in primary childcare activities

LEISURE ACTIVITIES

On an average day in 2006, nearly everyone ages 15 and over reported some sort of leisure or sports activity, such as watching TV, socializing, or exercising.

Men spent more time (5.7 hours) in doing leisure activities than women (4.9 hours)

Men are more likely to participate in sports on any given day than women (20% vs. 15%)

Among individuals ages 25 and over, those with less than a high school diploma spent 1.7 more hours per day than those with a bachelor’s degree

Married women spent 4.4 hours in the leisure and sports activity. On average, these amount less leisure time than married men(0.8 hour less)

MEASURING TIME SPENT AT WORK

The most frequently cited statistics to measure the amount at work is workweek length.

According to time use expert John Robinson that people have a tendency to overestimate how many hours they work when asked such questions

Actually., people work lee than before

However, people believe they have less time for leisure activities.

HOW WE SPEND OUR TIME

American average 30 to 40 hours of free time a week.

This represents an increase of one more hour per week compared to 1965.

The activities that may typically be thought of as leisure activity, hobbies/play, and other free time, account for just about as much time as television viewing.

The biggest increase leisure activity is sport/exercise, which increase about 2 hours per week

According to figure 3.3, people under 18 or above 55 have more free time than others

TIME FAMINE

In spite of the increasing in spending time for leisure, people in modern nations feel they are “starving” in time.

They feel they never live in the moment---- there is always the next thing to do.

Many wellness expert believe stress is the biggest killer in our society.

One can never do enough in our time famine culture.

Such life style makes us anxious and feels stressed all the time

TIME FAMINE

We have gained more free time but become more rushed.

While increased free time should slow down our pace of life and make us more leisurely, for many, the opposite appears to be happening.

Even as free time increases, we feel more rushed, as time is passing us by

SLOWING DOWN

Part of the desire to slow down the fast pace of life relates to reducing stress.

Stress levels are related to feelings of control.

If you are in a stressful situation and have the illusion that you can control it, then your stress reaction will be reduced.

This sense of control can even affect your immune system.

Optimistic belief that we are capable and competent to make changes are indeed critical to our health.

One may speculate as to whether the considerable time devoted to television or internet, computer games may be a response to high stress.

SLOW DOWN

Men and women differ in their stress responses to the role demands of employment and marriage.

Women’s responses are more sensitive two both factors, particularly to in relation to the “failed” situation of a marriage that results in divorce or separation.

The reduced stress level s of men in this situation are not surprising since after divorce, children reside with mothers in about 85% of the cases.

Additionally, males remarry considerably more often and quickly than divorced women, and married men exhibits less stress levels than never married men.

SLOW DOWN

Age and education are more important predictors of stress than gender or role factors.

After age 45, stress turns down dramatically that seems decline in career or family pressures

DIFFERENCES IN TIME USE BETWEEN WEEKDAYS AND

WEEKENDS ARE DECLINING

Sunday is the day most people have the free time while on Thursday they have the least.

Flexible working hours are a central reason for the declining gap in free time on weekdays and weekends.

TELEVISION NOW ACCOUNTS FOR ALMOST HALF OF OUR FREE TIME

USE

Almost all gains in free time have been used for television viewing.

People are considered as “plant” on weekdays after work----they don’t want to make any move---just want to sit on sofa and flick fingers only----

Bad bad leisure activity Increase weight and decrease family communication

Bad for health and family

Changes in free time activities

Increase in favorite free time activities are spending time with family and children, socializing with friends and neighbors, exercising and spending time in computer related activities.

EXERCISE

Compare to other uses of leisure time, are time expenditures for sport and outdoor recreation major time expenditures?

After studying the causes of stress levels, what can you do to reduce stress levels?