scholarly journals Income Inequality, Social Comparison, and Happiness in the United States

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 237802312098564
Author(s):  
Tim Futing Liao
Keyword(s):  
Income Inequality ◽  
Social Comparison ◽  
Time Use ◽  
Population Survey ◽  
The United States ◽  
Comparison Theory ◽  
American Time Use Survey ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Time Use Survey ◽  
The Individual

Using social comparison theory, I investigate the relation between experienced happiness and income inequality. In the analysis, I study happiness effects of the individual-level within-gender-ethnicity comparison-based Gini index conditional on a state’s overall inequality, using a linked set of the March 2013 Current Population Survey and the 2013 American Time Use Survey data while controlling major potential confounders. The findings suggest that individuals who are positioned to conduct both upward and downward comparison would feel happier in states where overall income inequality is high. In states where inequality is not high, however, such effects are not present because social comparison becomes less meaningful when one’s position is not as clearly definable. Therefore, social comparison matters where inequality persists: One’s comparison with all similar others’ in the income distribution in a social environment determines the effect of one’s income on happiness, with the comparison target being the same gender-ethnic group.

scholarly journals Extended Unemployment Insurance and Job Search: Evidence from Time Use Data

2015 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 653-683 ◽  
Author(s):  
Krishna Regmi
Keyword(s):  
Unemployment Insurance ◽  
Time Use ◽  
Job Search ◽  
The United States ◽  
Average Effect ◽  
Difference In Differences ◽  
American Time Use Survey ◽  
Percentage Points ◽  
Time Use Survey ◽  
The U.S

Abstract In this paper, I investigate the effect of extended unemployment insurance (UI) coverage in the United States in recent years on job search. The U.S. government extended UI benefits in several phases in 2008–2009, increasing the duration of the benefits to a maximum of 99 weeks, up from the regular 26 weeks. Using the American Time Use Survey (ATUS) data, I find that women are more sensitive to the extended UI benefits than men. Difference-in-differences estimation shows that the average effect of the UI extensions for women is over a 10 percentage points decline in the probability of job search. However, I do not find any statistically significant effect on men.

scholarly journals Time Spent at Home and Alone in the United States, 2019

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kelsey Jeanne Drotning
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Time Use ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Black People ◽  
The United States ◽  
Foreign Born ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
American Time Use Survey ◽  
Time Use Survey ◽  
At Home

Social distancing conditions implemented in response to the Covid-19 pandemic significantly altered where and with whom people were able to spend their time. By examining data from the 2019 American Time Use Survey, this study provides a baseline of how much time people spent at home, alone, and alone at home prior to the onset of the pandemic. Men, Black people, older adults, low-income households, foreign-born adults, people who live alone, and people who are unemployed spend more time alone than other groups. These findings highlight which groups in the United States already spent more time at home and more time alone pre-pandemic, forecasting how other groups time use may shift in response to Covid-19 pandemic social distancing regulations.

Assigning Metabolic Equivalent Values to the 2002 Census Occupational Classification System

2011 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 581-586 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catrine Tudor-Locke ◽  
Barbara E. Ainsworth ◽  
Tracy L. Washington ◽  
Richard Troiano
Keyword(s):  
Light Intensity ◽  
Time Use ◽  
Population Survey ◽  
Classification Systems ◽  
Occupational Activity ◽  
Population Estimates ◽  
Metabolic Equivalent ◽  
Occupational Classification ◽  
American Time Use Survey ◽  
Time Use Survey

Background:The Current Population Survey (CPS) and the American Time Use Survey (ATUS) use the 2002 census occupation system to classify workers into 509 separate occupations arranged into 22 major occupational categories.Methods:We describe the methods and rationale for assigning detailed Metabolic Equivalent (MET) estimates to occupations and present population estimates (comparing outputs generated by analysis of previously published summary MET estimates to the detailed MET estimates) of intensities of occupational activity using the 2003 ATUS data comprised of 20,720 respondents, 5323 (2917 males and 2406 females) of whom reported working 6+ hours at their primary occupation on their assigned reporting day.Results:Analysis using the summary MET estimates resulted in 4% more workers in sedentary occupations, 6% more in light, 7% less in moderate, and 3% less in vigorous compared with using the detailed MET estimates. The detailed estimates are more sensitive to identifying individuals who do any occupational activity that is moderate or vigorous in intensity resulting in fewer workers in sedentary and light intensity occupations.Conclusions:Since CPS/ATUS regularly captures occupation data it will be possible to track prevalence of the different intensity levels of occupations. Updates will be required with inevitable adjustments to future occupational classification systems.

scholarly journals Cyclical Variation in Labor Hours and Productivity Using the ATUS

2013 ◽  
Vol 103 (3) ◽  
pp. 99-104 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael C Burda ◽  
Daniel S Hamermesh ◽  
Jay Stewart
Keyword(s):  
Time Use ◽  
Population Survey ◽  
Work Hours ◽  
Monthly Variation ◽  
American Time Use Survey ◽  
Hours Of Work ◽  
Time Use Survey ◽  
The Hours ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Weekly Work

We examine monthly variation in weekly work hours using data from 2003 to 2010. The data sources include the Current Population Survey (CPS) on hours/worker, the Current Employment Survey (CES) on hours/job, and the American Time Use Survey (ATUS) on both. The ATUS data minimize recall difficulties and constrain hours of work to accord with total available time. The ATUS hours/worker are less cyclical than the CPS series, but the hours/job are more cyclical than the CES series. We present alternative estimates of productivity based on ATUS data, and find that it is more pro-cyclical than other productivity measures.

scholarly journals The Time Intensity of Childcare Provided by Older Immigrant Women in the United States

2016 ◽  
Vol 39 (7) ◽  
pp. 823-848 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alma Vega
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Time Use ◽  
Immigrant Women ◽  
The United States ◽  
Demographic Characteristics ◽  
Recent Immigrants ◽  
American Time Use Survey ◽  
Recent Immigrant ◽  
Time Use Survey ◽  
Working Age

Older adults comprise an increasing share of new legal admits to the United States. While many are financially dependent on their families, a more complete picture requires taking into account the nonmonetary contributions of this population. Using the American Time Use Survey, this study examines whether older recent immigrant women provide more unpaid childcare than their native-born and more established immigrant counterparts. Results suggest that while older recent immigrant women are more likely to provide unpaid childcare, this effect is eliminated upon controlling for demographic characteristics. However, among those who do provide childcare, older recent immigrant women provide more hours of care even after controlling for demographic and household characteristics. This pattern holds up even after restricting the analysis to women living with young children. These results may signal reciprocal supportive networks. Working-age adults may financially support older recent immigrants, while older recent immigrants provide unremunerated childcare for working-age adults.

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