Time poverty

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Time poverty is a term used to describe not having enough discretionary time, as opposed to not having enough money or resources as in economic poverty. Time-poor individuals often face time-related stress, or time pressure, which has negative health effects. Research on time poverty emphasizes its overlooked status in poverty reduction.

Contents

Definition and measurements

Common categorizations of time in time-use surveys. Time poverty is defined by a lack of discretionary time and can be caused by a number of factors. Time Poverty Flow Chart.png
Common categorizations of time in time-use surveys. Time poverty is defined by a lack of discretionary time and can be caused by a number of factors.

Time poverty is often measured as a lack of free or discretionary time due to an imbalance in necessary time (e.g. sleeping, eating), committed time (e.g. domestic labor), and contracted time (e.g. employment). [1]

Estimates for daily committed time varies by study and by individual [2] and are sometimes recorded as "non-free minutes" combining committed and contracted time. [3] Measurements do not always factor poor time management into calculations. [4] Necessary time may also vary due to developmental sleep needs. [5]

Economic inequality can also contribute to inequal committed time measurements as higher income households may hire housekeepers, personal chefs, or au pairs to "buy time." [2]

Spinney and Millward use a Time Poverty Threshold (TPT), similar to an economic poverty line, defined as "150% of median contracted time (i.e. paid labour) plus committed time (i.e. domestic labour)." [6]

People respond more negatively to small losses in money than small losses in time, but the reverse is true for large losses. This could explain time poverty creep. [7]

Background

Time poverty is often referenced in the phrase "money rich, time poor," which describes wealthy people with busy schedules and little leisure time. [8] [9] Some have characterized this as "chosen time poverty," as wealthier people can choose to live near daily activities or hire servants to alleviate time poverty whereas poorer people cannot. [5] As a term, "time poverty" may imply free time is positive; however, volunteer work may present social benefits that "just staying at home" does not provide. [10]

Causes

Gender disparities

Inequitable division of labor increases committed time and exacerbates gender differences in time poverty. HOUSEWIFE IN THE KITCHEN OF HER MOBILE HOME IN ONE OF THE TRAILER PARKS. THE TWO PARKS WERE CREATED IN RESPONSE TO... - NARA - 558298.jpg
Inequitable division of labor increases committed time and exacerbates gender differences in time poverty.

Women are more likely to be time poor than men. The discrepancy may be due to the existence of a "second shift," coined in 1989 by Arlie Hochschild to describe the double burden many women face in performing the majority of housework after returning from work. [11] Time burden from raising children falls disproportionately on women than men. [12]

10-14 year-old girls spend 50% more time doing household chores than their male peers. This imbalance carries into adulthood worldwide. [13]

Infrastructure improvements such as roadbuilding, electrification, and better access to water in the Global South has been shown to lower time constraints on women.

However, conditional cash transfers may worsen time poverty for women as they often take on the role of fulfilling program requirements. [14] One study found that unconditional cash transfers failed to alleviate time poverty because women did not spend the transfers on time-saving services, such as laundry services or take-out. [15]

Working hours

Campaigns for the eight-hour workday often used terms such as "leisure" or "recreation" for discretionary time. 8hoursday banner 1856.jpg
Campaigns for the eight-hour workday often used terms such as "leisure" or "recreation" for discretionary time.

Time poverty can be caused by poor work-life balance and long working hours. [16] Professional expectations to work overtime can exacerbate time pressure. [7] 32-hour workweeks and preventing after-hour work emails could reduce contracted time. [17] Parental leave, paid vacation hours, [18] and paid sick leave are proposed solutions to work-induced time poverty. [19]

High commute times and traffic also contribute to feelings of time poverty. Low-income workers commute 120 minutes more a week than coworkers who earned more. [7] One study found that transport-related time poverty and general time poverty were not correlated but "co-occur under specific circumstances" among working parents. The study recommended 15-minute cities as one way to potentially reduce transport-related time poverty. [5]

Low-income students are more likely to be time-poor than their peers due to need to work to pay for food and housing. [20]

Care work

According to official United Kingdom government statistics, parents living with children under 15 have 14 fewer hours of free time. Parents are also less likely to finish university than childless students. [18] Familial elder care also increases time poverty, as caregivers tend to keep their employment. [21]

Effects

Health

A 2013 study found time-poor individuals are at a higher risk for obesity due to a decrease in time spent on physical activity. [22] Another study found 1 in 4 American women delayed health care treatment due to lack of free time. [13]

Lack of discretionary time may lead to fewer social connections and worsen mental health. [12] Time poor workers may suffer from burnout or presenteeism. [16]

Negative student outcomes

Students experiencing time poverty have worse academic outcomes than their peers despite working harder. Time-poor students take fewer credits and have lower levels of university retention. [20]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "When Twenty-Four Hours is Not Enough: Time Poverty of Working Parents". Social Indicators Research. 82 (1) – via JSTOR.
  2. 1 2 "Time Poverty Thresholds and Rates for the US Population". Social Indicators Research. 104 (1). October 2011 – via JSTOR.
  3. ↑ "Time Poverty, Work Status and Gender: The Case of Pakistan". The Pakistan Development Review. 51 (1) – via JSTOR.
  4. ↑ "The Time-Pressure Illusion: Discretionary Time vs. Free Time". Social Indicators Research. 73 (1). August 2005 – via JSTOR.
  5. 1 2 3 Tiznado Aitken, Ignacio; Palm, Matthew; Farber, Steven (2024-07-01). "Exploring the interplay of transportation, time poverty, and activity participation". Transportation Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives. 26: 101175. doi:10.1016/j.trip.2024.101175. ISSN   2590-1982.
  6. ↑ "Time and Money: A New Look at Poverty and the Barriers to Physical Activity in Canada". Social Indicators Research. 99 (2). November 2010 – via JSTOR.
  7. 1 2 3 "Why Time Poverty Matters for Individuals, Organisations, and Nations". Nature Human Behaviour. 4 (10). October 2020.
  8. ↑ Smith, John D.; Stewart, Sue (2014-05-15). Cambridge International AS and A Level Travel and Tourism. Cambridge University Press. ISBN   978-1-107-66472-2.
  9. ↑ "Client Challenge". www.ft.com. Retrieved 2025-07-28.
  10. ↑ Walker, Julian. "Time poverty, gender and well-being: lessons from the Kyrgyz Swiss Swedish Health Programme". Development in Practice. 23 (1) – via JSTOR.
  11. ↑ Robinson, Cheryl. "What Time Poverty Is Costing You—And How To Take Control". Forbes. Retrieved 2025-07-28.
  12. 1 2 Jaggi, Sukhpreet Kaur; Gupta, Deepa Jitendra (2025-12-31). "Chronically busy, chronically unhealthy? Understanding the time poverty and health interplay through systematic review synthesis". Cogent Social Sciences. 11 (1): 2491707. doi:10.1080/23311886.2025.2491707.
  13. 1 2 Hyde, Elizabeth; Greene, Margaret E.; Darmstadt, Gary L. (December 2020). "Time poverty: Obstacle to women's human rights, health and sustainable development". Journal of Global Health. 10 (2): 020313. doi:10.7189/jogh.10.020313. ISSN   2047-2986. PMC   7688061 . PMID   33282212.
  14. ↑ Van Der Meulen Rodgers, Yana (June 2023). "Time Poverty: Conceptualization, Gender Differences, and Policy Solutions" . Social Philosophy and Policy. 40 (1): 79–102. doi:10.1017/S0265052523000389. ISSN   0265-0525.
  15. ↑ Whillans, Ashley; West, Colin (2022-01-14). "Alleviating time poverty among the working poor: a pre-registered longitudinal field experiment". Scientific Reports. 12 (1): 719. doi:10.1038/s41598-021-04352-y. ISSN   2045-2322.
  16. 1 2 Cameron, Hugh. "Americans are suffering from "time poverty"". Newsweek.
  17. ↑ Robinson, Cheryl. "What Time Poverty Is Costing You—And How To Take Control". Forbes. Retrieved 2025-07-28.
  18. 1 2 Bishop, Katie (3 February 2022). "The 'time poverty' that robs parents of success". www.bbc.com. Retrieved 2025-07-29.
  19. ↑ "Time Poverty Is The Health Issue We're Not Paying Attention To But Should Be". Women's Health. 2021-09-02. Retrieved 2025-07-29.
  20. 1 2 Wladis, Claire; Hachey, Alyse C.; Conway, Katherine M. (2024-11-01). "It's About Time, Part II: Does Time Poverty Contribute to Inequitable College Outcomes by Gender and Race/Ethnicity?". AERA Open. 10 23328584241237971. doi: 10.1177/23328584241237971 . ISSN   2332-8584.
  21. ↑ Connelly, Rachel; Dong, Xiao-yuan; Jacobsen, Joyce; Zhao, Yaohui (2018-04-03). "The Care Economy in Post-Reform China: Feminist Research on Unpaid and Paid Work and Well-Being". Feminist Economics. 24 (2): 1–30. doi:10.1080/13545701.2018.1441534. ISSN   1354-5701.
  22. ↑ "How Does Time Poverty Affect Behavior? A Look at Eating and Physical Activity". Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy. 35 (1). March 2013 – via JSTOR.
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