Time pressure, technology and gender: the conditioning of temporal experiences in the UK

Abstract

Purpose

This article seeks to address differential experiences of the “time squeeze”. It problematises current accounts which explain time pressure as resulting from substantive increases in the volume of activities performed in daily life and/or an acceleration of the tempo of daily practices.

Design/methodology/approach

The main data source is in‐depth household interviews, although analysis of data from the 1985 and 1992 Health and Lifestyle Survey and the 1937 “day in the life of diaries” are also examined.

Findings

It is argued that harriedness best captures contemporary temporal experiences. Three forms of harriedness are identified: substantive overload; temporal dis‐organisation; and, temporal density. The latter two forms are characterised by the challenge of coordinating practices within social networks and the difficulty of allocating practices in relation to temporally fixed institutional events.

Originality/value

It is suggested that these two forms of harriedness capture women's experiences more so than men's, and that technologies which facilitate time saving and shifting exacerbate rather than alleviate this temporal conditioning of daily life.

Citation

Southerton, D. (2007), "Time pressure, technology and gender: the conditioning of temporal experiences in the UK", Equal Opportunities International, Vol. 26 No. 2, pp. 113-128. https://doi.org/10.1108/02610150710732195