Time use survey

The New Zealand Time Use Survey, the country's first national survey on time use, was funded by the government through the Ministry of Women's Affairs. Statistics New Zealand, under contract to the Ministry, undertook the work of designing the survey from mid-1997. Data collection took place over the 12 months from July 1998 to June 1999. A sample of about 8,500 New Zealanders aged 12 and over completed a two-day diary.

The report Around the Clock on the Statistics New Zealand site aims to provide comprehensive findings and analysis from the Time Use Survey to a wide audience. The report shows how patterns of economic and social participation vary between different groups according to sex, age, ethnicity, education, and family and economic circumstances. The first section, on economic participation, analyses the time spent on paid work and unpaid work for different groups of people. The second section, social participation, uses time use data to illustrate people's involvement with others and within the community. The report contains commentary, and easy-to-understand graphs that demonstrate specific examples of how time is used.