Advance Brochure

Frequently Asked Questions About the American Time Use Survey (ATUS)
When will I be interviewed?
Why is it
important that I participate?
People use their time differently
depending on their age and circumstances. This survey asks a wide
variety of people how they use their
time: students, retirees, workers,
parents, men, and women. Your participation in this survey ensures we
provide accurate data on the time use
and quality of life of all people aged
15 and over living in America. You are
an important part of this survey.

I don’t have time to complete
the survey. Can someone
else in my household
participate instead?
You were carefully selected to represent thousands of other people in
households similar to yours. Unfortunately, we cannot interview other
members of your household, but
we can work with you to set up a
convenient interview time.

Are my answers confidential?
Yes. You are protected by United
States Code, Title 13, Section 9,
which requires all information about
you and your household to be kept
strictly confidential and used only for
statistical purposes. In compliance
with this law, the Census Bureau
cannot release any information that
could identify you or your household
to anyone, including market research
firms, political campaigns, or other
government agencies.

Who is conducting the
ATUS?

To capture a full picture of time use
on all days of the week, we assigned
you a specific day of the week as
your interview day. If you are
unavailable at the time of the interview, we would be happy to call you
on the same day the following week.
You can always call to schedule a
time for the interview that is more
convenient for you. Your time is
very important—we know because
we study it.

The U.S. Census Bureau collects and
processes the data. The Bureau of
Labor Statistics (BLS) analyzes and
publishes the information. The
Census Bureau removes all confidential information from the data files,
such as name and address, before
the BLS reviews the data.

What happens during the
interview? What will you ask
me?

I just participated in the Current
Population Survey. Why are
you contacting me again?

This one-time survey takes 15–20
minutes to complete, from the
moment you pick up the phone. We
interview just one person from each
household. After confirming some
information about your household,
the interviewer will ask you to recall
how you spent the past 24 hours
and then follow up with a few questions related to your time use.

When we interview you for the ATUS,
we save time and money because we
don’t have to ask many of the background questions that were already
asked in the Current Population
Survey (CPS). This shortens the time
required to complete the ATUS and
allows us to conduct interviews with
more people. Unlike the CPS, the ATUS
is a one-time only survey.

I’m still in high school.
Why was I selected?

How can I learn more about
the ATUS?

We interview people of all ages,
including teenagers. How teenagers
balance school, work, and time with
family and friends is an important
topic for educators, health professionals, and others. If you are under
18 years old and selected to represent your household in this survey,
a parent or guardian is welcome to
be on the line with you during the
interview.

Please visit our respondent Web
site for more information at
.
You can also view charts and
tables with ATUS data at

and
.

ATUS Data Show How We Spend Our Time

The American Time Use Survey
A survey about how people spend their time

Between 5–6 p.m. on weekdays,
34 percent of adults spend some
time in transit.

On an average weekday, adults
spend 1 hour and 15 minutes
traveling by car, train, bus,
bike, or by some
other means.

34%
How much time do
Americans spend working?
Sleeping? In transit?

1 hr1 5 min
Women spend about 34 minutes
preparing food and drinks on an
average day...

...while men spend 14 minutes
doing so.

1 4 min

3 4 min
On days they do housework—
dusting, vacuuming, washing clothes,
and similar activities—women spend
about 1 hour and 48 minutes on these
chores.

1 hr 48 min

Parents of a child under age 3 spend
about 2 hours and 12 minutes per
day providing childcare as a main
activity...

2 hr1 2 min
At 7 a.m. 64 percent of full-time
college students are asleep...

On days they do lawn care, men
spend about 2 hours and 20 minutes
caring for their lawns.

2 hr 20 min
How do people
spend their time
when they retire?

...while parents whose youngest
child is older than 12 spend
about 21 minutes per day
providing this care.

2 1 min

64%

32%

On an average school day, high
school students spend about
1 hour and 33 minutes watching TV...

1 hr 3 3 min

How much time do
people spend taking care
of children and elderly
parents?

...and about 57 minutes doing
homework.

5 7 min

U.S. Department of Commerce
U.S. CENSUS BUREAU

( Contact us at: 1-800-331-4706

Time
is a resource
—just like money—
and knowing how
people spend their
time helps answer
important
questions.

Do men and women
spend their time
differently?

...but at the same hour,
only 32 percent of full-time
workers are still asleep.

Economics and Statistics Administration

ATUS222

What is the value of
volunteer work to
the country?”

What is the quality of life
like in the United States,
and how does it compare
to other countries?

*

census.gov

ATUSInfo@census.gov

How often do people
exercise, and what sorts
of activities do they do for
exercise?

How much time is spent
in education or training?
Is this increasing or
decreasing?