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Leisure Inequality in the United States: 1965–2003

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  • Almudena Sevilla

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  • Jose Gimenez-Nadal
  • Jonathan Gershuny

Abstract

This paper exploits the complex sequential structure of the diary data in the American Heritage Time Use Study (AHTUS) and constructs three classes of indicators that capture the quality of leisure ('pure leisure', 'co-present leisure' and 'leisure fragmentation') to show that the relative growth in leisure time enjoyed by less-educated individuals documented in previous studies has been accompanied by a relative decrease in the quality of that leisure time. These results are not driven by any single leisure activity, such as time watching television. Our findings may offer a more comprehensive picture of inequality in the US and provide a basis for weighing the relative decline in earnings and consumption for the less educated against the simultaneous relative growth of leisure.
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Suggested Citation

  • Almudena Sevilla & Jose Gimenez-Nadal & Jonathan Gershuny, 2012. "Leisure Inequality in the United States: 1965–2003," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 49(3), pages 939-964, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:demogr:v:49:y:2012:i:3:p:939-964
    DOI: 10.1007/s13524-012-0100-5
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    Cited by:

    1. Gimenez-Nadal, J. Ignacio & Molina, Jose Alberto, 2015. "Health status and the allocation of time: Cross-country evidence from Europe," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 46(C), pages 188-203.
    2. Joan García-Román & Sarah Flood & Katie Genadek, 2017. "Parents’ time with a partner in a cross-national context: A comparison of the United States, Spain, and France," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 36(4), pages 111-144.
    3. J. Gimenez-Nadal & Jose Molina, 2016. "Health inequality and the uses of time for workers in Europe: policy implications," IZA Journal of European Labor Studies, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 5(1), pages 1-18, December.
    4. Katie R. Genadek & Sarah M. Flood & Joan Garcia Roman, 2016. "Trends in Spouses’ Shared Time in the United States, 1965–2012," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 53(6), pages 1801-1820, December.
    5. Ignacio Gimenez-Nadal, J. & Molina, Jose Alberto & Velilla, Jorge, 2018. "The commuting behavior of workers in the United States: Differences between the employed and the self-employed," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 19-29.
    6. J. Ignacio Gimenez-Nadal & Jose Alberto Molina & Raquel Ortega, 2017. "Like my parents at home? Gender differences in children’s housework in Germany and Spain," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 52(4), pages 1143-1179, June.
    7. Gimenez-Nadal, J. Ignacio & Molina, José Alberto, 2015. "Voluntary Activities and Daily Happiness in the US," IZA Discussion Papers 8764, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    8. Fang Lei & McDaniel Cara, 2017. "Home hours in the United States and Europe," The B.E. Journal of Macroeconomics, De Gruyter, vol. 17(1), pages 1-27, January.
    9. Jorge González, 2015. "Estimating income elasticities of leisure activities using cross-sectional categorized data," Documentos de Trabajo dt2015-02, Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y Empresariales, Universidad de Zaragoza.
    10. Gimenez-Nadal, Jose Ignacio & Sevilla, Almudena, 2016. "Intensive Mothering and Well-being: The Role of Education and Child Care Activity," MPRA Paper 74249, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    11. Hua Wang & J. Ignacio Gimenez-Nadal, 2018. "Teens and twenties: cultural and preferences differences in the uses of time in Spain," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 25(1), pages 51-55, January.
    12. Giménez-Nadal, J. Ignacio & Molina, Jose Alberto & Ortega, Raquel, 2015. "As my parents at home? Gender differences in childrens’ housework between Germany and Spain," MPRA Paper 62699, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    13. Anne Roeters & Mariëlle Cloïn & Tanja van der Lippe, 2014. "Solitary Time and Mental Health in the Netherlands," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 119(2), pages 925-941, November.
    14. González Chapela, Jorge, 2016. "Disentangling income and price effects in the demand for time online," Information Economics and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 35(C), pages 65-75.
    15. CHIAPPORI Pierre andré & GIMÉNEZ-NADAL José ignacio & MOLINA José alberto & THELOUDIS Alexandros & VELILLA Jorge, 2020. "Intrahousehold Commitment and Intertemporal Labor Supply," LISER Working Paper Series 2020-11, LISER.
    16. Sarah M. Flood & Rachelle Hill & Katie R. Genadek, 2018. "Daily Temporal Pathways: A Latent Class Approach to Time Diary Data," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 135(1), pages 117-142, January.
    17. Benjamin Bridgman, 2016. "Engines of Leisure," BEA Working Papers 0137, Bureau of Economic Analysis.
    18. Gimenez-Nadal, J. Ignacio & Molina, José Alberto & Velilla, Jorge, 2018. "Telework, the Timing of Work, and Instantaneous Well-Being: Evidence from Time Use Data," IZA Discussion Papers 11271, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    19. Bryan, Mark L. & Sevilla, Almudena, 2014. "Flexible Working and Couples' Coordination of Time Schedules," IZA Discussion Papers 8304, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    20. Katie R. Genadek & Sarah M. Flood & Joan Garcia Roman, 2020. "Same-Sex Couples’ Shared Time in the United States," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 57(2), pages 475-500, April.
    21. Jooyeoun Suh & Nancy Folbre, 2016. "Valuing Unpaid Child Care in the U.S.: A Prototype Satellite Account Using the American Time Use Survey," Review of Income and Wealth, International Association for Research in Income and Wealth, vol. 62(4), pages 668-684, December.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Happiness; Inequality; Income; Consumption; Time use;

    JEL classification:

    • C13 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric and Statistical Methods and Methodology: General - - - Estimation: General
    • C23 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Models with Panel Data; Spatio-temporal Models
    • D13 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Household Production and Intrahouse Allocation
    • J12 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Marriage; Marital Dissolution; Family Structure
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • Z13 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification

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