Non-participant fathers in time-use studies: uninvolved or data artifact?

TY - JOUR

T1 - Non-participant fathers in time-use studies: uninvolved or data artifact?

AU - Pacholok, S.

AU - Gauthier, A.H.

N1 - Reporting year: 2010

PY - 2010

Y1 - 2010

N2 - It is well-established that time spent with parents is beneficial for children’s development. However, time-use studies from various countries consistently indicate that there are a substantial number of parents, especially fathers, who report spending no time with their children. Much of the literature on parental time simply ignores these parents or assumes that they are similar to other parents. Using data from the 2005 Canadian General Social Survey time-use survey, this study takes a closer look at respondents who report spending 0 min with their children and asks whether they are simply an artifact of the data or whether they have distinct social, economic and demographic characteristics. The findings indicate that while data anomalies may partially explain the existence of this group, non-participants also differ in terms of their family, work, and demographic characteristics. Both the methodological and substantive implications of these findings are discussed. Keywords: time use; parental time; time diary; fathers; childcare; non-participant

AB - It is well-established that time spent with parents is beneficial for children’s development. However, time-use studies from various countries consistently indicate that there are a substantial number of parents, especially fathers, who report spending no time with their children. Much of the literature on parental time simply ignores these parents or assumes that they are similar to other parents. Using data from the 2005 Canadian General Social Survey time-use survey, this study takes a closer look at respondents who report spending 0 min with their children and asks whether they are simply an artifact of the data or whether they have distinct social, economic and demographic characteristics. The findings indicate that while data anomalies may partially explain the existence of this group, non-participants also differ in terms of their family, work, and demographic characteristics. Both the methodological and substantive implications of these findings are discussed. Keywords: time use; parental time; time diary; fathers; childcare; non-participant

U2 - 10.1007/s11205-009-9475-0

DO - 10.1007/s11205-009-9475-0

M3 - Article

SN - 0303-8300

VL - 96

SP - 249

EP - 266

JO - Social Indicators Research

JF - Social Indicators Research

IS - 2

ER -