Discretionary Activity Time Allocation of Individuals Between In-Home and Out-of-Home and Between Weekdays and Weekends

Chandra R. Bhat & Rajul Misra
University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, 78712

Abstract:

This paper formulates a model for the allocation of total weekly discretionary time of individuals between in-home and out-of-home locations and between weekdays and the weekend.  The model formulation takes the form of a continuous utility-maximizing resource allocation problem.  The formulation is applied to an empirical analysis using data drawn from a 1985 time-use survey conducted in the Netherlands.  This survey gathered time-use information from individuals over a period of one week and also collected detailed household-personal socio-demographic data.  The empirical analysis uses household socio-demographics, individual socio-demographics, and work-related characteristics as the explanatory variables.  Among the explanatory variables, age of the individual and work duration during the weekdays appear to be the most important determinants of discretionary time allocations.

Key words: discretionary time allocation, in-home and out-of-home activity substitution, resource allocation, time-use analysis, utility-maximization