Infrequently occurring activities and contexts in time use data.

Abstract

In this paper we describe an approach to the study of time use data that focuses on relatively infrequent activities as well as the contexts in which the activities take place. To illustrate the method, we present several examples from a secondary analysis of the Multinational Comparative Time-Budget data, based on over 25,000, 24-hour, time use diaries collected in 12 countries during 1965 through 1966. Activities that represent a small fraction of the overall time budget of a population may nevertheless yield valuable insights into a culture or group. Analyses of such mundane events as doing the laundry, transporting children, and taking a walk indicate marked differences among the countries surveyed in terms of frequencies, durations, by whom, and with whom these activities were typically performed. In the future, time use studies can be expected to contribute to the understanding of mental disorders in natural contexts. In contrasting specific diagnostic groups with normal subjects, analyses of specific activities (e.g., personal care, social interaction) or contexts (e.g., alone vs. with others, at home vs. away) may be particularly relevant. Strategies that combine continuous recording (diary) with repeated, instantaneous experience-sampling methods are likely to be the most useful in such studies of mental disorders.