Children's time in structured and unstructured leisure activities

Data from the 1981 Time Use Longitudinal Panel Study (N = 492 children ages 3-18), supplemented by teacher/parent reports, are drawn on to investigate factors influencing time spent in leisure activities (LAs). Analysis reveals that more time is spent in unstructured than structured LAs. Analysis of variance yields result on the influence of child, mother, & socioeconomic characteristics, & finds that: males spend significantly more time than do females (Fs) in active sports, playing games, & passive leisure, especially watching TV on weekends, while Fs spend significantly more time socializing on weekends. The amount of time spent socializing increases with age, but decreases with employment. Time spent playing games decreases with age, increases with number of children, & decreases with increases in family income. Given the large number of children who do not participate in leisure activities, it is suggested that future research explore the probability of participation. 7 Tables, 1 Appendix, 44 References.