Leisure time and parenting in Europe: a more difficult equation for mothers?

Objective

This paper analyzes gender inequalities in leisure time within coresident opposite-sex couples with and without children at home in five European countries to evaluate the gendered parental impact in leisure time.

Background

In European societies, women continue to bear much of the physical and mental burden involved in running a household and managing family life resulting in greater levels of stress and time deprivation. Time spent in leisure has been associated with better physical and psychological wellness. Understanding how gender influences the distribution of leisure time among couples living with and without children at home, and how these effects differ across European countries, is important to understand individual and couples' well-being.

Method

Drawing on information from the Multinational Time Use Study for 15,024 matched couples residing in Spain, Italy, France, Finland, and the United Kingdom, we conduct a series of ordinary-least-squares regression analyses with country fixed effects.

Results

The general trends reveal that women in Europe allocate less time to leisure and that mothers experience lower leisure of high quality compared to their partners when their children are below the age of 5. However, Finnish and British couples exhibit a more egalitarian distribution of leisure time regardless of their parental status, particularly when compared to Italian and Spanish ones.

Conclusion

This study unveils a gendered use of leisure time, as well as a gendered parental impact when children are young. However, the impact of women's second shift in leisure time varies across countries, suggesting a cultural and institutional effect.

Implications

These findings have implications for researchers, health professionals, and policymakers concerned with understanding and alleviating situations of overstress, time poverty, and depression among women, but especially among mothers of young children.