A survey developed by the Department of Labor shows that families spend less time together because they spend more time working to make ends meet.
But the Bush administration's 2009 budget eliminates these data. Could it be that they do not want us to know just how un-family friendly workplaces have become on their watch? This week, the Senate will debate the Bush proposal.
In tough economic times, it's tempting to see data-gathering as a luxury, but social scientists believe it's all the more necessary to find out how the trends in work, parenting and marriages are affected by economic challenges.
Consider this: Mothers do less housework today - 14 fewer hours per week - than they did 40 years ago. They also do more paid work - exactly 14 more hours. But mothers haven't held their own because they are also doing four hours more of child care than in the past. How do we know? University of Maryland's Suzanne Bianchi and colleagues used a survey now on the chopping block - the American Time Use Survey (ATUS), a time diary study collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics since 2003. (The researchers linked to earlier studies to compare).
Dads are stepping up in new ways, too. Men have steadily increased participation in housework and child care over the past 30 years. Contrary to earlier claims, dads who work less than full time don't use their extra time just to watch TV. Part-time worker dads do more housework (about an hour more) than full-time worker dads, and 40 minutes more child care. We know this thanks to forthcoming work from Ohio State's Liana Sayer and Sanjiv Gupta (UMass-Amherst), based on the same ATUS.
If women have given up 14 hours a week of housework and taken on 14 more hours of paid work, what have they given up for four more hours of child care? This news is less rosy.
Mothers have sacrificed social bonds with spouse, kin and friends to meet the higher standards for time with children. Bianchi's ATUS studies reveal that, compared to 20 years ago, married working moms now spend less time with their spouse while single moms spend less time with friends and family. (Related research by Brandeis' Rosalind Barnett highlights how men, too, now report feeling stressed out by the struggle to balance work and family.)
The American Time Use Survey - and good research based on it - is a key resource in coping with the revolution in family life. As researcher Bianchi explains, "ATUS provides essential information about how Americans spend their time - caring for children, cleaning house, working for pay, caring for sick adults."
Everyone relies on these jobs being done to keep society running well: but it is vital that we know how, when and by whom.
The urgency is highlighted in a briefing paper ("The Effect of the Economic Crisis on Families") released Thursday by the nonpartisan Council on Contemporary Families. CCF scholars examine the economic tsunami ripping through our country and enumerate the harsh impact on marriages, parenting, school performance and nutrition.
In particular, the report shows employers cutting back on family benefits while more workers are forced to look for a second job or find extra hours just to get by. The impact may not be obvious: Family relationships are stressed and time limited while parents try to meet rising expenses and falling resources. Fasten your seat belts. It's going to be a bumpy ride.
The report's co-author Stephanie Coontz reminds us, "Right now, the economy is slowing down, but many families find themselves speeding up. Unless we keep up with these changes, we cannot forecast what practical support and information families need. We'd like to think that assuring that data continue to be collected is an issue that cuts across partisan divisions, uniting family researchers and advocates from many different points of view."
Failing to measure (and respond) to what is going on with America's families is just sweeping bad news under the rug - as many husbands and wives know that doesn't fix anything.
Neglecting data in general has been a hallmark of this administration. Going by their gut may make President Bush or other occupants of the "Colbert Nation" feel comfortable, but we've learned to our cost the perils of proceeding without hard data.
This week Congress reconsiders funding for ATUS. It is not currently in the president's proposed budget. But if family values prevail, perhaps that will change.
Virginia Rutter is an assistant professor of sociology at Framingham State College, a board member of the Council on Contemporary Families, and was co-investigator of the NIH-funded National Couples Survey from 2004-2006. She is co-author with Pepper Schwartz of two books: "The Gender of Sexuality" and "The Love Test."
