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Time or money: impact of parental employment on time that 4 to 5 year olds spend in language building activities

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  • Jude Brown

    (The University of New England)

  • Michael Bittman

    (The University of New England)

Abstract

Early childhood is a critical time for establishing the communication and literacy skills that shape children’s subsequent academic, social and employment opportunities. Debates around the family environments that support children’s optimal development, have focused on mothers’ workforce participation, neglecting the effects fathers’ working hours, and socioeconomic differences. This study examined time use diary data collected for a large sample of Australian four to five year-old children. It considered the relationships between parental employment and the amount of daily time that children spent in language-related activities by income group. For low and middle income families the combined effect of fathers working long hours and mothers working, resulted in children spending significantly less time in language-related activities. In contrast, for high income families, parental employment hours had no impact on children’s time use. These findings suggest that for children at greatest risk of poor developmental outcomes, developmental opportunities may be enhanced by strategies that reduce levels of long work hours by fathers.

Suggested Citation

  • Jude Brown & Michael Bittman, 2007. "Time or money: impact of parental employment on time that 4 to 5 year olds spend in language building activities," Australian Journal of Labour Economics (AJLE), Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre (BCEC), Curtin Business School, vol. 10(3), pages 149-165.
    • Handle: RePEc:ozl:journl:v:10:y:2007:i:3:p:149-165
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Chikako Yamauchi, 2010. "Parental Investment in Children: Differential Pathways of Parental Education and Mental Health," The Economic Record, The Economic Society of Australia, vol. 86(273), pages 210-226, June.
    2. Taryn W. Morrissey, 2023. "The Earned Income Tax Credit and Short-Term Changes in Parents’ Time Investments in Children," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 44(2), pages 412-433, June.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth; Time Allocation and Labour Supply; Economic Development; Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration; Analysis of Education;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply
    • O15 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration
    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education

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