Ask an American about what they do during their free time and they are likely to tellyou they don't have any. A recent survey found that 47 percent of Americans thoughttheir free time had decreased during the last five years, while only 22 percent reportedmore free time. Such beliefs, however, don't necessarily reflect what is actuallyhappening in terms of how long we work during a week or the percentage of our livesgiven to work. In terms of hours worked per week, for example, the findings of thelargest national time use studies show that Americans gained almost one hour per dayof free time during the period from 1965 to 1985. American males average about 40hours of free time per week while females average 39 -- hardly the workaholic countrywe envision. Further, the percentage of total hours of life spent at work, which haddropped from 22% to 15% between 1900 and 1950, has doubtlessly decreased sincethen. The average American is retiring earlier and earlier and entering the labor forcelater and later.

Almost all the gains we have made in free time, time use studies show, have been givenover to more television viewing, a behavior which some research has associated withdeterioration in mood, decreased mental capabilities (due to the lack of complexity ofmuch of its content), declines in physical fitness, and increases in obesity.

The problems of time use in our society and the work-leisure equation are not ones ofworking longer hours. Instead, they are: (1)our attitudes toward time; (2) unevendistribution of leisure across the life cycle; and (3) the deterioration of education for theworthy use of leisure.

In terms of attitudes toward time our ethic of open-ended consumption of goods hassimply carried over to the consumption of experiences, making time the ultimate scarcecommodity. Additionally, the rise of "efficiency" to the premier value in our culture hasmeant that much of our leisure activity is undertaken with the same attitudes towardtime saving as is work, robbing it of much of its pleasure. Scientific management is asmuch in evidence at Disney World as on the shop floor. Finally, many Americans havebecome virtual walking resumes, defining themselves almost solely by what they do.The ancient Athenian ideal of leisure, the absence of the necessity of being occupied, isnot only rarely realized but most Americans regard contemplation as simply a waste oftime -- being busy has become a primary indicator of importance. The car phone, forexample, is taken as a sign of success rather than failure.

The distribution of free time across our life cycle is also problematic. We have allowedthe large gains in free time which have occurred in our society during the last fewdecades to accumulate during the last ten to twenty years of life. We are also enteringthe labor force later in life. College is providing for prolonged adolescence. AverageAmericans now retire in their early sixties and can expect a decade and a half or moreof free time. Most are in relatively good health. Economically, they are less likely to bepoor than average. Some of these gains need to be plowed back into earlier stages oflife, giving those with comparatively little free time, such as parents of children underthe age of five and single mothers, more leisure. This may be done through maternityand paternity leave, flexible hours, worksite day care and other ways. Children andtime use must also be re-thought. Our kids are in school, on average, less than one-halfof the days of the year, spend twice as much time as their parents watching VCRrecorded entertainment, and less time doing homework than youth in most otherindustrial nations.

Perhaps the biggest problem concerning our work-leisure equation is that preparationto use leisure has deteriorated, for many, even more dramatically than our preparationfor work. Leisure has been "dumbed down" not only because the de-skilling of manyjobs carries over into free time use, but also because of cuts in libraries, museums,parks, physical education in schools and inner-city youth programs. Such cuts havemeant that skills for use during leisure are increasingly learned from MTV, at theshopping mall or in the gang. Under the Reagan Administration, most funding forcommunity-based recreation and park systems, such as the Land and WaterConservation Fund, was gutted. Americans' use of free time is of no concern ofgovernment. Federal policy now often assumes: better left to the market sector and tofamilies. Universities, also, have made deep cuts in curricula which seek to preparethose will manage public and private, non-profit recreation, park and leisure services.Meanwhile, they emphasize the technology-related disciplines which ultimatelyproduce more free time.

In the 1920s, increases in free time caused many social critics to wonder out loudwhether leisure constituted a threat to those who were ill-prepared to use it insatisfying ways. Our high rates of drug abuse and crime suggest our preparation forthe use of free-time is still a problem. The psychological evidence we have is that one ofthe most satisfying uses of leisure involves activities in which skills and abilities havebeen developed and in which challenges match such skills and abilities. In suchactivities, as diverse as playing the trumpet, rock climbing or chess, challenges may beincreased as skills and abilities increase. Such behaviors involve extensive educationalpreparation and such preparation requires not only the learning of skills but also ofappreciations.

The ability to use leisure wisely, Bertrand Russell believed, was the final test of acivilization. While we cannot say with precision what constitutes "wise use," it appears that America would have flunked such a test. Further public dialogueis urgently needed on this issue if we are to improve our use of leisure. Increased freetime is where science and technology must ultimately take us.

For further information, contact Geoffrey Godbey, Department of Leisure Studies, S-203 Henderson Building, Penn State University, University Park, PA 16802. Phone (814) 865-1851; Fax: (814) 863-4257.

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