Abstract
This article provides an original comparison of the time cost of children for the parental couple and for each parent in two European countries—France and Italy—that differ in terms of structural and normative constraints. Using time-use surveys carried out in 2008–2009 in Italy and in 2009–2010 in France, it investigates how Italian and French couples’ time use varies quantitatively according to the number and the age of their children. We estimate both the direct and indirect time cost of children and take into account the compression of the parents’ free time. After controlling for numerous covariates, the results corroborate the hypothesis that Italian children have a higher direct cost for couples (especially those with a large family or with preschool children), but also for mothers and fathers separately. Faced with this huge burden of childcare time, Italian women adjust by substituting housework with childcare. The presence of children reduces parents’ free time in both countries, but large families in Italy experience a higher and persistent loss of free time than in France. The gender imbalance in childcare is similar in both countries, but a more pronounced gender gap in time dedicated to domestic work is observed in Italy than in France. The loss of free time is always greater for women than for men in both countries, but in France, women’s free time is only partially affected by the number of children, contrary to Italy.
Highlights
While most children are desired and constitute a source of happiness in modern societies, they induce specific costs
This article provides an original comparison of the time cost of children for the parental couple and for each parent in two European countries—France and Italy—that differ in terms of structural and normative constraints
It is common for working women to exit the labour market after having a child: one in five pregnant working women are no longer in the labour market when the child is around 2 years old, and this proportion has increased in recent years (Istat 2014); 53% of Italian mothers of children aged 3–5 are in work, compared to 74% of their French counterparts
Summary
While most children are desired and constitute a source of happiness in modern societies, they induce specific costs. From a theoretical point of view, three main groups of determinants underlie individual time allocation, i.e. structural, institutional and normative determinants (Gauthier and DeGusti 2012) In this framework of analysis, France and Italy reveal major differences and a few commonalities. Women’s and men’s domestic time depends on time spent in paid work and on work schedules (Bianchi et al 2000) This allocation of time to housework is related to differences in spouses’ comparative advantage in the labour market (Becker 1991) and to spouses’ relative resources, such as level of education or income (Brines 1994). It is common for working women to exit the labour market after having a child: one in five pregnant working women are no longer in the labour market when the child is around 2 years old, and this proportion has increased in recent years (Istat 2014); 53% of Italian mothers of children aged 3–5 are in work, compared to 74% of their French counterparts
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Schedule a callMore From: European journal of population = Revue europeenne de demographie
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