A full model of family choices of market work and household work

The purpose of this study is to examine spousal time allocation and explain the ways in which husbands and wives allocate their time between work at home, work in the market place, and leisure.;The sample used in this study is obtained from 1979--1992 waves of the University of Michigan Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID). The Sample is restricted to households where only the husband, wife and possibly children live in the household. We conducted a structural change test between 1979--1985 and 1986--1992 periods. The results indicated that we could not reject the null hypothesis of structural change between the two periods. In estimating the model we used two methods: the ordinary least squares and the Heckman procedure.;Empirically, we found a strong association between own wage rates; the existence of children in the family; the education of the wife and the wife's market work hours. Also, own wage rate, existences of children in the family, education of wife and the wife's market work status are strongly associated with the housework hours for wives. Thus, in explaining the recent trends, the increased market wage for wives, the increased level of education for wives, and the decline in number of children over time have a strong association with the higher female participation, increased market work hours and the decline of housework hours for wives.;For Husbands, the wife wage rate, existence of children in the family, education of the husband and the market work status of the wife have strong association with market work hours for husbands. Also, wife age, own wage rate, existence of children in the family, education of the husband, spouse status of work and the husband status of work have strong association with housework hours for husbands. The only variable supporting the trend of declining labor supply of husbands over time is the wage rate of the wife. The increase in wife labor participation and the decrease in the husband labor participation support the recent trend of increasing housework hours for husbands.