Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Geography & Environmental Studies

Faculty/School

Faculty of Arts

First Advisor

Sean Doherty

Advisor Role

Thesis Supervisor

Abstract

Over the past few decades, the observation of household activities was based on the participants' observed activity patterns using traditional diary-based methods and/or stated perceptions during face-to-face interviews. This research uses an innovative approach to probe men and women's activity and scheduling behaviours as they occur within a household setting. The approach involves the use of a computerized household activity scheduling process survey (CHASE) capable of tracing how activity-travel decisions are pre-planned, planned, added, modified, deleted, and executed over a one-week period. This approach goes beyond traditional diary-based methods, which tends to focus solely on observed outcomes. The data utilised 76 couples with children and 32 without children. The objectives of the study are to compare men and women in different household types (couples and couples with children) according to differences in: (1) observed activities; (2) spatial and interpersonal flexibility of activities; and (3) planning time. The observed activity patterns reveals that certain activities are still gender bias. Where means may hide overall differences, comparison of the distribution of paired differences suggests that some males exceed some females in duration of certain activities and vice versa. However, the relative lack of differences between males and females in terms of scheduling behaviour and flexibility was somewhat unexpected, especially given known differences between males and females' observed activity patterns. In certain activities, men's and women's scheduling behaviour are different from each other.

Convocation Year

2005

Convocation Season

Spring

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