Time use of millennials and Generation X: differences across time

Abstract

Generational cohorts in the United States have long interested demographers, social scientists, researchers, and others. In 2019, millennials were the same ages—23 to 38 years—as members of Generation X in 2003. I use American Time Use Survey data from these years to examine how millennials in 2019 and members of Generation X in 2003 spent their time on an average day. Millennials were less likely to spend time doing housework, caring for and helping household members, and purchasing goods and services than were members of Generation X. On the other hand, millennials were more likely to spend time providing animal and pet care than were members of Generation X. Each generation spent nearly the same amount of time working on an average day, and the men of each generation spent more time working than their female counterparts. Each generation spent nearly the same amount of time in leisure and sports activities overall. However, millennial men spent more time playing games on an average day than did men in Generation X, and millennial women spent less time reading for leisure than did women in Generation X.