Gender and Time Use: The Hidden Gender Inequality Shaping Everyday Life
8 March 2025
Gender and Time Use: The Hidden Gender Inequality Shaping Everyday Life
On International Women’s Day, Professor Man-Yee Kan and Dr Grace Chang discuss their research on gender inequalities in time use, revealing how unpaid domestic work remains a major barrier to gender equality across societies.
While discussions of gender inequality often focus on wage gaps and career progression, a less visible but equally significant divide exists in how men and women spend their time.
The GenTime project, led by Professor Man-Yee Kan, is shedding light on gender inequalities in time use, from paid work to domestic labour and leisure.
The project, funded by the European Research Council, examines time use patterns across the past four decades (1980s-2020s), using time use diaries from China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan, and comparing them with Western countries. The aim is to track changes in how men and women divide their time and understand the consequences of these differences.
Findings from the project confirm a longstanding pattern: women do far more unpaid domestic and care work than men. This imbalance has profound effects - women have less time for paid work, are more likely to work part-time, earn lower wages, and have fewer opportunities for skill development and leisure.
Watch our interview with Professor Man-Yee Kan and Dr Grace Chang to find out more:
While cultural and policy differences exist between regions, the GenTime team has found striking similarities in time use patterns across societies.
Dr Grace Chang, Postdoctoral Researcher on the project, said:
Across many countries, men consistently spend more time in paid work, while women take on the bulk of unpaid domestic and care work. Understanding why these patterns persist helps us see the role of culture and policies in shaping gender gaps.
However, there are also key regional differences. For example, in East Asia, adolescents (aged 10-17) spend nearly twice as much time on education-related activities compared to their Western peers - often at the expense of leisure, exercise, and sleep.
Meanwhile, men in countries like Japan and South Korea work exceptionally long hours, which becomes a major barrier to their participation in domestic tasks. In these countries, many men report doing zero domestic work.
The study finds that welfare policies significantly impact how men and women divide their time. Countries with strong state support, such as Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Denmark, tend to have the smallest gender gaps in paid and unpaid work.
In contrast, societies where family members are expected to provide more child and elderly care - like Japan, South Korea, Italy, and Spain - see wider gender disparities that close very slowly over time.
Policies such as compulsory paternity leave for fathers have been shown to remove the stigma around men taking parental leave and increase their participation in childcare.
However, in countries like the UK, GenTime data shows that men’s time use has not changed significantly upon becoming fathers in the last three decades. Meanwhile, motherhood continues to reduce women’s time in paid work and increase their domestic responsibilities.
One of the most striking findings of the GenTime project is evidence of a 'stalled gender revolution'.
Professor Kan explains:
Between the 1980s and 2000s, gender gaps in paid and unpaid work began to close. Women entered higher education in greater numbers and participated more in paid work, reducing their time on domestic tasks.
However, since the 2000s, progress has stalled. Men are lagging behind in increasing their contribution to domestic work, and the changes they do make tend to focus on more 'gender-neutral' tasks such as DIY or gardening, rather than cooking or cleaning.
These patterns emerge from an early age: boys tend to have more leisure time and physical activity than girls, while girls are expected to take on household chores - even in childhood. Since leisure and exercise are linked to mental and physical well-being, these imbalances can have long-term consequences.
The researchers argue that achieving true gender equality in the workplace, politics, and beyond, is impossible without addressing inequalities in time use.
Professor Kan explains:
We need proactive policies that challenge gender essentialism - the idea that men should be the breadwinners and women the primary caregivers. Policies such as flexible working, paid parental leave, and better support for childcare can help close these gaps.
However, policies alone are not enough. There is a need for cultural shifts that encourage men to take on more unpaid work and break down stereotypes around who is 'supposed' to do what.
Dr Chang adds:
Time is a resource, and it reflects power. Who gets to decide how to spend their time? By understanding and addressing gender inequalities in time use, we can build a more gender-equal society.
For more insights into the GenTime project, visit the GenTime website.
