"Feeling part of society usually involves participating in certain activities such as sports, the arts, volunteering or social networking," says lead author Dr. Matt Barnes in a release. "Our research shows that older people and those who work unusual hours face particular barriers to participating in such activities."
Part of the problem, say researchers, is that social outlets aren’t always open during off-hours and people they would socialize with are not available.
The study finds that people who work outside Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. — especially evenings or weekends —spend less time speaking with others face-to-face or enjoying time socializing. Those who work evenings spend 6 hours 45 minutes doing social activities, and weekend workers spend just over five hours compared to eight hours for those who work normal hours.
The study also found that older people face barriers to participating in social activities. It suggests that over one million older people report poor social relations and social exclusion because they’ve retired, lost a partner or are ill. On average, older people spend 11 hours alone on a weekday and 10½ hours alone at weekends, the study finds.
The authors believe local government and charities need to improve access to social outlets for these two groups.
"Local governments can encourage public leisure complexes and public transport services to operate wider hours or 24/7,” said Barnes. “Charities could be more aware of these groups when arranging social clubs targeting shift workers and elderly people.”
The study, "Making time use explicit in an investigation of social exclusion in the U.K.," was carried out by researchers at the National Centre for Social Research. It was funded by the Economic and Social Research Council.
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Source: CBC
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