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Alone Together: Gender Inequalities in Couple Time

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  • Giacomo Vagni

    (University of Oxford)

Abstract

An important body of research has used time diaries to assess the transformation of gender relationships at home. However, little is known about how partners perceive time shared together. While the household division of labor still remains heavily gendered, it can be expected that what partners do, even when they are together, is also gendered. The aim of this paper is to address the question of the discrepancy (or mismatch) in couples’ reporting of time together as well as the potential discrepancy in the activities engaged in during shared time. Using the 2015 UK Time Use Survey, I show that there is no gender difference in how partners report being together; however, important gender imbalances exist in what partners do when together. In particular, I find that, when together with their partner, men are much more likely to watch TV and enjoy leisure while women do domestic chores. I conclude by discussing different concepts of time together and the usefulness of couple-level diary data for studying gender relationships at home.

Suggested Citation

  • Giacomo Vagni, 2019. "Alone Together: Gender Inequalities in Couple Time," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 146(3), pages 487-509, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:soinre:v:146:y:2019:i:3:d:10.1007_s11205-019-02135-7
    DOI: 10.1007/s11205-019-02135-7
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Emily Christopher, 2021. "Capturing Conflicting Accounts of Domestic Labour: The Household Portrait as a Methodology," Sociological Research Online, , vol. 26(3), pages 451-468, September.
    2. Katie R. Genadek & Sarah M. Flood & Joan Garcia Roman, 2020. "Same-Sex Couples’ Shared Time in the United States," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 57(2), pages 475-500, April.

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