Parents' Work Schedules and Time Spent with Children

Katie R Genadek1,2, Rachelle Hill2

  • 1University of Colorado - Boulder and IZA. Contact: katie.genadek@colorado.edu, 1440 15th St, Boulder, CO 80309.

Community, Work & Family
|January 29, 2019
PubMed

Insights

Certain work schedule timings, not all attributes, impact parental time with children. This research uses time diary data to analyze work-family overlap for parents.

Area of Science:

  • Sociology
  • Family Studies
  • Labor Economics

Background:

  • Growing research examines work-family overlap.
  • Understanding how work schedules affect parental time with children is crucial for family well-being.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the relationship between parents' work schedule attributes and the time spent with their children.
  • To identify specific work schedule characteristics that influence the quantity and quality of parent-child time.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized nationally representative American Time Use Survey (ATUS) data for time diaries.
  • Merged ATUS data with the Current Population Survey (CPS) Work Schedules Supplement.
  • Analyzed associations between work schedule features (flexibility, remote work, schedule type) and parent-child interaction time.

Main Results:

  • Not all work schedule attributes significantly affect time spent with children.
  • Specific aspects of work schedule timing are demonstrably related to total parent-child time.
  • Work schedule attributes also correlate with time spent on particular activities with children.

Conclusions:

  • Work schedule timing is a key factor influencing parental engagement.
  • Policy and workplace interventions could leverage schedule flexibility to enhance parent-child bonding.
  • Further research should explore the nuances of different work schedule impacts on family life.

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