Couples’ time management systems: your time, my time or our time?

Abstract

Time should be understood in relation to others, not as a private matter. Therefore time, including its use and experience, is subject to negotiations, power relations and inequality. This article utilises the concept of the household economy and the household money management systems model to explore couples’ practices in relation to time. The research questions are: what time management systems can be identified, and how are couples differentiated? The study uses interview data from 22 heterosexual couples (44 individuals) interviewed in 2016 in different parts of Finland. The analysis identifies four types of time management system: (a) a female-managed system, (b) a male-managed system, (c) a pooling system, and (d) an independent management system. The study contributes to existing research on time and the family by identifying couples’ time management systems and social aspects of time.