A significant portion of the Québec population appears to have difficulty managing their time. During a 1992 study of time use, 41.4% of Québec men and 40.8% of Québec women stated that they felt a time crunch every day. The Institut de la statistique du Québec (ISQ) states that the number of people who felt a time crunch increased with the amount of time spent in productive activities (remunerated professional activities and unremunerated domestic activities).

In the first 20% of the population, which was composed of people who spent the least amount of time in productive activities, 27.4% of men and 25% of women stated that they felt a time crunch every day. In the upper quintile, which was composed of 20% of those who spent the most time in productive activities, the number of people who felt a time crunch every day climbed to 56.5% for men and 60.1% for women.

The publication entitled Les conditions de vie au Québec: un portrait statistique states that a large portion of the Québec population felt that time constraints had increased over the last few years. While only 24.5% of men and 26.2% of women stated that they felt less of a time crunch than five years ago, 48.9% of men and 50.9% of women stated that they felt more of a time crunch than five years ago. This perception increased with the amount of time spent in productive activities.

In the first 20% of the population, which was composed of people who spent the least amount of time in productive activities, 32% of men and 30.1% of women stated that they felt more of a time crunch than five years ago. In the upper quintile, which was composed of 20% of the people who spent the most time in productive activities, the proportion of people who stated that they felt more of a time crunch than five years ago rose to 65.3% for men and 70.2% for women.

The time use study presented participants with a series of ten statements related to time use constraints. Participants who agreed with seven or more statements were considered to be dealing with high levels of stress stemming from extremely demanding time use constraints. Therefore, according to this measure, 14.3% of men and 16.2% of women underwent high levels of stress with regards to time use constraints in various aspects of their lives. This proportion increased with the amount of time spent in productive activities.

In the first 20% of the population, which was composed of people who spent the least amount of time in productive activities, 12.3% of men and 9.5% of women agreed with seven or more statements with regards to time use constraints. In the upper quintile, this proportion rose to 21.9% in men and 28.2% for women.

Lifestyle and Stress

Lifestyle affected the degree of stress caused by time use. Barely 10.8% of men living with a spouse only agreed with seven or more statements related to time use constraints; in the case of women living with a spouse only, this proportion rose to 11.5%. The presence of children in the household increased the amount of stress associated with time use, thus: 20.1% of men living with both a spouse and children under the age of 25 agreed with seven or more statements, compared with 23% of women in the same situation.

Finally, the ISQ observed that certain categories of women found themselves in the position of having to be everywhere in order to manage everything. Thus, in households with two incomes and at least one pre-school age child, the proportion of women coping with high stress levels jumped to 34.2%. In households where only the male spouse worked, the number of women coping with high stress levels dropped to 12.8% and the number of women who agreed with three statements or less (thus experiencing lower stress levels) rose to 55.4%.

December 10, 1996

Author:     Denis Laroche
                Direction des statistiques sociodémographiques
                Institut de la statistique du Québec
                Telephone: (418) 691-2406 poste 3220
                Or 1-800-463-4090 (toll free in Canada and the United States)
                E-mail: denis.laroche@stat.gouv.qc.ca