The vast majority of Australians are opting out of any weekday face-to-face social interaction as time-poor families retreat to their home “bunkers”.
Less than one in five men (19 percent) do any in-person socialising on weekdays and the figure for women is only marginally better at 26.4 percent.
The numbers increase on the weekends with one in three men socialising, as well as 40 percent of women.
The latest Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) time use survey paints a picture of time-starved families living fairly insular, sedentary lives.
It is a far cry from decades past when communities were alive with mid-week events, after-work drinks and membership of clubs and groups.
Across the full week, only 14 percent of men and 15.6 percent of women report that they go for a walk, and 20.4 percent and 17.6 percent respectively do any exercise or sport.
Reading is enjoyed by just 10 percent of men and 18.7 percent of women, and “relaxing” is a luxury for just 17 percent of both genders.
By far the most common free time activity is watching television or streaming services (just over 60 percent), and sporting and cultural participation was reported by less than 3 percent of people.
Overall, people reported an average of 5 hours and 34 minutes a day on free time activities.
This compared with 10 hours and 43 minutes a day on activities such as sleeping, eating and health and hygiene, and an average of 8 hours and 20 minutes a day on employment and education activities.
The survey found more than a third of women (36 percent) and 30 percent of men “always or often” felt rushed or pressed for time.
“Balancing work and family was the most common reason for always or often feeling rushed or pressed for time (42 percent),” the ABS said.
“When looking at time stress across age groups, almost half of females aged 35 to 44 (49 percent) felt always or often rushed or pressed for time.”
The figures revealed that people who worked from home found an extra hour a day to do unpaid work on their workday.
“Just under one quarter (23 percent) of people supervised a child while doing another activity during their day,” the ABS said.
“Females spent more time on unpaid work, at 4 hours 53 minutes on average a day, than males at 3 hours 52 minutes.”
The full survey is on the ABS website.
