Evolutions in time-use and division of labour of men and women

Glorieux, I., J. Minnen, T.P. van Tienoven, J. Deyaert, E. Mészáros (2015): Evolutions in time-use and division of labour of men and women. Revue Interventions économiques, 53: 1-16 - TOR 2015/27.

Abstract

Research on the combination of work and family life and how this differs for men an women has been subject to three important developments over the last decade: (1) demographic trends including the increase in ‘new’ forms of cohabiting and evolutions in women’s labour market participation, (2) methodological innovations in measuring time-use and time perceptions, and (3) a growing academic network studying work life balance (Bianchi and Milkie, 2010). This contribution mainly serves the second development, since it analyses data of a time-use survey. Time-use surveys are very suitable to provide a realistic and nuanced picture of daily activities of men and women. In a time-use survey, respondents register all their daily activities in a timediary for a certain period of time, giving a detailed picture of daily life of men and women. A thorough analysis of time-use data allows studying to what extend and with what reason the presumed conflict between work and family life manifests itself differently for men and women and how it affects other domains of daily life (e.g. leisure, social participation, and personal care).