May 10,2001 DETROIT (AP) - Despite a surge in the number of working mothers, children in two-parent households are spending more time with Mom or Dad than kids did 20 years ago, according to a study released Wednesday.
Children between the ages of 3 and 12 in two-parent families spent about 31 hours each week with their mothers in 1997, compared with about 25 hours in 1981. Time spent with fathers increased from 19 hours to 23.
"Working mothers have been particularly vilified," said Sandra Hofferth of the University of Michigan's Institute for Social Research. "A lot of people out there say that because of changes in families, mothers and fathers are spending less time with children. There was no actual evidence for it."
The Michigan researchers said the findings are important because studies show significant parental involvement helps children intellectually, socially and emotionally.
"Parental involvement with children should lead to those children having better scores on achievement tests and less problems with aggression and better social outcomes," Hofferth said.
Mothers working outside home are actually spending as much time with their children as did stay-at-home moms studied in 1981, she said. About 63 percent of mothers worked outside the home in 1997, up from 50 percent in 1981.
The national study compared diaries kept by 243 children in 1981 and 2,125 children in 1997. With the help of their parents, the youngsters charted how much time they spent with their mothers and fathers on one weekday and one weekend day per week during the school year.
The children described what kind of activities they did - such as playing, traveling from extracurricular events or working on homework - and who was present.
The goal was to determine if shifting demographics have affected the time parents and children spend together. Those factors included a higher number of mothers with advanced educational backgrounds, more mothers in the work force and more single parents than 20 years ago.
The researchers said single mothers struggle to spend time with their children - spending about 21 hours together each week, about the same as in 1981. The study did not look at time spent by single fathers with children.
Copyright 2001 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
