University of Tokyo

Abstract
Survey Number 1081
Survey Title Survey on the Interaction between Work and Life, 2010
Depositor Gender Equality Bureau, Cabinet Office
(Former Name:Gender Equality Bureau Cabinet Office)
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Educational Purpose Only available for research.
Period of Data Use Permission One year
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Summary Work and life are two elements that constantly affect each other very closely. For example, long working hours can reduce the time for personal activities, childcare, and long-term care, and can often force professionals to change their work style. In the case of married couples, the same way that the respective conditions at work affect family relationships, family relationships may also influence the results at work.

The objective of this survey is to clarify the mutual impacts of (interactions between) an individual's life and work.

It is also possible that the mutual process between work and life is not limited to an individual level; for example, a husband and wife who share family responsibilities may impact each other. For this reason, a survey on married couples was conducted to analyze this hypothesis.

The two surveys on married and unmarried people had almost the same content, but the order of the questions and options were modified slightly to suit the characteristics of the respondents.
Data Type quantitative research
quantitative research: micro data
Universe (1) Married couples:
2,500 married couples (5,000 people) aged between 25 and 64 years who agreed to participate.
(2) Unmarried people:
1,000 men and 1,000 women aged 25 to 64 years.
Unit of Observation Individual
Sample Size (1) Married couples:
Valid responses: 1,958 couples, 3,916 people
Valid response rate: 78.3%
(2) Unmarried people:
Valid responses: 1,027 men, 758 women
Date of Collection 2010-09-03 ~ 2010-09-17
(1) Pre-test with small samples
2010/09/03 – 09/17

(2) Main survey
2010/10/28 – 11/12
Time Period 2010 ~ 2010
Spatial Unit
Sampling Procedure Other
(1) Survey of married couples:
The monitors registered with an online survey company who met the criteria were asked to apply to take this survey on married couples on the condition of answering it with the spouse's cooperation. When a sufficient number of applicants was obtained, they were allocated according to the place of residence, gender, and age group based on the census data.

(2) Survey on unmarried people:
The monitors registered with an online survey company who met the criteria were allocated according to the place of residence, gender, and age group based on the census data.
Mode of Data Collection Self-administered questionnaire: Paper
Survey by mailed questionnaire

Two concerns expected while conducting the survey on married couples were dealt with as follows:
1) Will the respondent provide honest answers with the spouse looking?
-> Two return envelopes were sent along with the questionnaire so that each respondent could answer and mail their responses separately. To obtain an honest answer, a note saying, "Please provide your own answers without consulting your spouse or family" was added on the cover of the questionnaire.

2) If the questionnaires of married couples were collected separately, would the pairs be matched correctly?
-> The questionnaires were marked with a "couple code" in advance so that the pairs could be matched correctly when the data were processed, even if the names or addresses were not written.
Investigator Gender Equality Bureau Cabinet Office, survey carried out by Japan Productivity Center
DOI 10.34500/SSJDA.1081
Sponsors (Funds)
Related Publications (by the Investigator) Please refer to the abstract in Japanese.
Related Publications (based on Secondary Analysis) List of related publications (based on Secondary Analysis)
Documentation Survey on married couples [ Questionnaire ][ Frequency Tables ]
Survey on unmarried people [ Questionnaire ][ Frequency Tables ]
Major Survey Items [Face items]
・Gender, age, area of residence, highest level of educational attainment
・Family structure; [Married couples only] number of children living together; [Married couples only] last child's age
・Presence of care-requiring person; [Unmarried people only] presence of friends/boyfriend or girlfriend, and presence of pets
・Personal income, fluctuation of personal income, household income, and allowance amount
・Form of employment, job category, and the type of industry that the organization belonged to

(1) Work situation
・Number of working days per week, form of work, actual working time per week, and fluctuation of actual working hours per week compared to one year ago
・Commuting time (one-way), post-work activities, mode of spending time after work, and amount of spare time
・Presence of non-regular employees at the workplace, characteristics of the workplace, support at the workplace, and work-related demand and flexibility
・The respondent's work style, approach to work, quality of work, company's performance, and work-related satisfaction
・Existence of a system related to work-life balance, and experience with and desire to use the system
・Ease of measuring work-life harmony at the workplace, situation of work-life balance, satisfaction with the current situation, and connection between work and private life

(2) Daily life and behavior
・Balance between the respondent's income and time; [Married couples only] Balance between spouse's income and time
・Frequency of domestic chores on weekdays, time of domestic chores on weekdays, frequency of domestic chores on weekends, and time of domestic chores on weekends
・[Married couples only ] frequency of childcare; [Married couples only] The person who helps with childcare
・Existence of hobbies and pastimes, how free time on weekdays is spent, and how free time on weekends is spent
・Changes in daily life in the last one year, views on gender-based division of labor, thoughts on domestic chores, thoughts on childcare, and thoughts on long-term care

(3) Views on daily life
・Satisfaction with daily life (friends and acquaintances, financial freedom, and others), satisfaction with life in general, and level of relaxation
・Possibility of losing the job, [Married couples only] possibility of the spouse losing the job
・Conditions of the social network

(4) Mental conditions
・Mental conditions (full of energy, feeling exhausted, and so on)
Date of Release 2017/06/07
Topics in CESSDA Click here for details

Working conditions
Family life and marriage
Time use
Topics in SSJDA Employment/Labor
Society/Culture
Version 1 : 2017-06-07
Notes for Users