The Vulnerable Hours of Leisure

As Dutch society has shed the traditional roles of men and women, the patterns of employment, household work and leisure have changed drastically. This book examines the patterns which have emerged by charting the increase in female employment, the blurring of male and female roles in the household, and how these factors affect the use of time in the Netherlands. It also focuses on the effects of the current changes in the organization of employment and the demands of the household, which allow more freedom and democratic interaction, but alter the balance of work and leisure. In an analysis of time allocation in Dutch society, Peters shows how the more equitable distribution of labour between the sexes, as well as the change of demands in the fields of home and employment, reduces time for leisure.