How to Measure Investments in the Well-Being of the Future: Methods for Collecting Data on Children’s Time Use
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14515/monitoring.2025.4.2905Keywords:
time budgets, time use, children, diary method, quantitative data collection methods, qualitative data collection methodsAbstract
The article provides an overview of methods for collecting data on children's time budgets as an indicator of everyday routine, quality of life, and well-being of children. There is no standard methodology for estimating children's time budgets in Russian social sciences yet. The purpose of this article is to provide an overview and systematize methods for collecting data on children's time budgets for specific research problems, and to discuss their advantages and disadvantages to develop recommendations for collecting data on Russian children's time budgets.
Among the quantitative methods of data collection, a standard diary, a light diary, and direct (stylized) questions about children's time use are discussed. It is determined that to improve the quality of life for the child population, the "voice of the child" must be considered when evaluating their time budgets. The article also discusses a number of qualitative methods for collecting data on children's time budgets: observation, projective techniques, in-depth and group interviews, focus group discussions, as well as modern methods of GPS technology and the use of an accelerometer.
The author comes to the conclusion that the most accurate data can be obtained using the observation method; however, this method is difficult to implement on large samples and is also characterized by high resource intensity. Although the choice of data collection method depends more on the research problem, it is preferable to use diary methods for national surveys.
In conclusion, there are a number of recommendations for studying the daily time use among children of different ages. Researchers studying public opinion will find value in the analytical overview's results, which also help achieve the Russian Federation's national goals and state statistics advancement.
Acknowledgments. This article was prepared in the framework of a research grant funded by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation (grant ID: 075-15-2022-325).
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