ATUS Stakeholder Survey

OMB Control Number 1225-0088

OMB Expiration: 1/31/2027

ATUS Stakeholder Survey 2024

Introduction

Thank you very much for helping us improve the American Time Use Survey (ATUS). The ATUS provides nationally-representative estimates of how, where, and with whom Americans spend their time. It is the only federal survey that provides data on the full range of people’s activities, including unpaid work such as childcare, housework, and volunteering.

Even if you are not a frequent user of ATUS products or have not used them at all, we would appreciate your feedback as it will help us understand your needs and experiences.

Your participation in this survey is voluntary. We estimate that it will take approximately 10 minutes to complete.

If you have any questions about this survey, please contact [email protected] and reference the ATUS User Feedback Questionnaire.

For more information about the ATUS, please visit: http://www.bls.gov/tus.

This voluntary survey is being collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under OMB No. 1225-0088 (Expiration Date: 1/31/2027). We estimate that this survey takes 10 minutes to complete. You are not required to respond to this collection unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. We will use the information you provide to make improvements to BLS online publications. Your participation is voluntary, and you have the right to stop at any time. Results from this survey will be aggregated for internal use and individual results will not be made public. This survey is being administered by SurveyMonkey and resides on a server outside of the BLS Domain. The BLS cannot guarantee the protection of survey responses and advises against the inclusion of sensitive personal information in any response. By proceeding with this survey, you give your consent to participate in this survey.

Click 'Next' to begin the survey.

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Customer and Usage Information

Q1. Have you ever used American Time Use Survey (ATUS) products from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Web site [see http://www.bls.gov/tus]? ATUS products include the ATUS news releases, tables, historical data series, Web charts, data files, and survey documentation.

• Yes Go to Q9

• No Go to Q2

• Not Sure Go to Q2

Non-BLS Source ATUS Users

Q2. American Time Use Survey (ATUS) data are also provided by some non-BLS sources. Have you ever used ATUS data from any of the following non-BLS sources?

1. IPUMS American Time Use Survey Data Extract Builder (ATUS-X) ○ Yes ○ No

2. American Heritage Time Use Study (AHTUS or AHTUS-X) ○ Yes ○ No

3. Multinational Time Use Study (MTUS or MTUS-X) ○ Yes ○ No

4. Other source - please describe below ○ Yes ○ No

Please describe the other source used

If any a-d are yes, go to Q3, all else go to Q29.

Q3. When did you last use ATUS data from a non-BLS source?

• In the last 6 months

• In the last year Go to Q4

• Between 1 and 2 years ago

• More than 2 years ago

Q4. For which of the following purposes have you used ATUS data? (Select all that apply)

• Media and press reporting

• Social media

• Instruction and education

• Consumer market analysis

• Economic research

• Sociological research Go to Q5. All else go to Q8.

• Other research

• Personal interest

• Other purpose (please specify)

Q5. What were the general topics of your research or analysis? (Select all that apply)

• Household or other nonmarket production

• Health

• Food

• Work-life balance

• Families

• Eldercare

• Labor

• Well-being

• Specific activities, such as paid work, childcare, or leisure

• Specific subpopulations, such as teenagers or full-time workers

• International comparisons

• Survey methods

• Other (please specify)

Q6. Since the ATUS sample comes from the Current Population Survey (CPS) sample, data collected in the CPS provide information about ATUS respondents and their households. Have you ever used CPS data in analyses of ATUS data? (Select all that apply)

• Yes, I’ve used variables about race, ethnicity, educational attainment, geography, or those with the suffix “_CPS8” attached to their names

• Yes, I’ve linked ATUS data to the basic CPS

• Yes, I’ve linked ATUS data to a CPS supplement

• No, or not sure.

Go to Q7

Q7. Organizations other than BLS have sponsored additional questions on the ATUS, called modules [See: https://www.bls.gov/tus/modules/modules.htm]. Have you ever used any of the following ATUS module data?

1. Eating and Health Module data ○ Yes ○ No ○ Not sure

2. Leave and Job Flexibilities Module data ○ Yes ○ No ○ Not sure

3. Well-being Module data ○ Yes ○ No ○ Not sure

Go to Q8

Q8. How did you learn about the ATUS? (Select all that apply)

• Social Media

• Conference

• Coworker or colleague

• Internet search

• Media or press

• Research paper

• Teacher or professor

• Other (please specify)

Go to Q34

BLS ATUS Users

Q9. Which ATUS products have you used? (Select all that apply)

• News release

• Published tables

• Unpublished tables sent by ATUS staff upon request

• Data files for generating your own estimates, downloaded from the BLS Web site

• Data series of historic estimates, extracted from BLS databases

• Web charts

• Survey documentation

• Other (please specify)

If “Data files for generating your own estimates,” are checked, go to Q10, all else go to Q12.

Q10. Since the ATUS sample comes from the Current Population Survey (CPS) sample, data collected in the CPS provide information about ATUS respondents and their households. Have you ever used CPS data in analyses of ATUS data? (Select all that apply)

• Yes, I’ve used variables about race, ethnicity, educational attainment, geography, or others on the ATUS-CPS file

• Yes, I’ve linked ATUS data to the basic CPS

• Yes, I’ve linked ATUS data to a CPS supplement

• No, or not sure

Go to Q11

Q11. Organizations other than BLS have sponsored additional questions on the ATUS, called modules www.bls.gov/tus/modules.htm. Have you ever used any of the following ATUS module data?

1. Eating and Health Module data ○ Yes ○ No ○ Not sure

2. Leave and Job Flexibilities Module data ○ Yes ○ No ○ Not sure

3. Well-being Module data ○ Yes ○ No ○ Not sure

Go to Q12

Q12. When did you last use an ATUS product?

• In the last 6 months

• In the last year Go to Q13

• Between 1 and 2 years ago

• More than 2 years ago

Q13. For which of the following purposes have you used an ATUS product? (Select all that apply)

• Media and press reporting

• Social media

• Instruction and education

• Consumer market analysis

• Economic research

• Sociological research Go to Q14. All else go to Q15.

• Other research

• Personal interest

• Other purpose (please specify)

Q14. What were the general topics of your research or analysis? (Select all that apply)

• Household or other nonmarket production

• Health

• Food

• Work-life balance

• Families

• Eldercare

• Labor

• Well-being

• Specific activities, such as paid work, childcare, or leisure

• Specific subpopulations, such as teenagers or full-time workers

• International comparisons

• Survey methods

• Other (please specify)

Go to Q15

Satisfaction with ATUS Products

Q15. Based on your experience using ATUS products, please indicate how much you agree or disagree with the following statements.

	Strongly Agree	Agree	Neutral	Disagree	Strongly Disagree	No Basis to Decide
Web charts are easy to understand
Information is easy to find on the ATUS Web site
Information I need is available on the ATUS Web site
ATUS concepts, sources, and methods are explained in a way I understand

Go to follow-up questions for items marked “disagree” and “strongly disagree”; if none, go to Q17

Q16. In the previous question, you disagreed with the statement(s) listed below.

Please feel free to suggest ways we could improve an item (also feel free to skip an item if you have nothing specific to suggest).

Web charts are easy to understand
Information is easy to find on the ATUS Web site
Information I need is available on the ATUS Web site
ATUS concepts, sources, and methods are explained in a way I understand

Q17. Please indicate how much you agree or disagree with the following statements about ATUS single-year and multi-year data files.

	Strongly Agree	Agree	Neutral	Disagree	Strongly Disagree	No Basis to Decide
Data are accurate
Data are available for the subpopulations I require
Data are available for the activities I require
Data are current enough for my needs
Data are easy to find
Data are easy to download
Data files are in the format I need

Go to follow-up questions for items marked “disagree” and “strongly disagree”; if none, go to Q19

Q18. In the previous question, you disagreed with the statement(s) listed below.

Please feel free to suggest ways we could improve an item (also feel free to skip an item if you have nothing specific to suggest).

Data are accurate
Data are available for the subpopulations I require
Data are available for the activities I require
Data are current enough for my needs
Data are easy to find
Data are easy to download
Data files are in the format I need

Q19. Based on your experience using ATUS products, please indicate how much you agree or disagree with the following statements about the ATUS published tables on the BLS.gov website.

	Strongly Agree	Agree	Neutral	Disagree	Strongly Disagree	No Basis to Decide
Published tables are in the format I need
Published tables provide the information I need
Published tables are accurate
Published tables show the subpopulations I require
Published tables show the activities I need

Go to follow-up questions for items marked “disagree” and “strongly disagree”; if none, go to Q21

Q20. In the previous question, you disagreed with the statement(s) listed below.

Please feel free to suggest ways we could improve an item (also feel free to skip an item if you have nothing specific to suggest).

Tables are in the format I need
Tables provide the information I need
Tables are accurate
Tables show the subpopulations I require
Tables show the activities I need

Q21. Based on your experience using ATUS products, please indicate how much you agree or disagree with the following statements about data series of historic ATUS estimates, available from the BLS database.

	Strongly Agree	Agree	Neutral	Disagree	Strongly Disagree	No Basis to Decide
Data series are easy to find
Data series are available for the subpopulations I require
Data series are available for the activities I require
Data series are in the format I need
The data retrieval tools (such as data finder, one-screen, and others) are useful

Go to follow-up questions for items marked “disagree” and “strongly disagree”; if none, go to Q23

Q22. In the previous question, you disagreed with the statement(s) listed below.

Please feel free to suggest ways we could improve an item (also feel free to skip an item if you have nothing specific to suggest).

Data series are easy to find
Data series are available for the subpopulations I require
Data series are available for the activities I require
Data series are in the format I need
The data retrieval tools, (such as data finder, one-screen, and others) are useful

Q23. Are there other ATUS products you would like to see in the future?

• Yes - please describe the new products below

• No

Describe the new product(s) below

ATUS Documentation

Q24. ATUS provides the following survey documentation on the BLS Web site. Please rate the usefulness of these survey documents to you.

	Very Useful	Useful	Only a little Useful	Not Useful	Have Not Used
ATUS User’s guide
ATUS Data dictionaries
ATUS Coding lexicons
ATUS Coding rules manual
ATUS Questionnaires

Go to follow-up questions for items marked “Only a little useful” and “Not useful”; if not, go to Q26

Q25. In the previous question, you said the item(s) listed below was only a little useful or not useful.

Please feel free to suggest ways we could improve an item (also feel free to skip an item if you have nothing specific to suggest).

ATUS User’s guide
ATUS Data dictionaries
ATUS Coding lexicons
ATUS Coding rules manual
ATUS Questionnaires

Additional information about customers

Q26. How did you learn about the ATUS? (Select all that apply)

• Social media

• Conference

• Coworker or colleague

• Internet search

• Media or press Go to Q27

• Research paper

• Teacher or professor

• Other (please specify)

Q27. How often do you visit the ATUS Web site (www.bls.gov/tus)?

• Once a year or less

• 2-3 times a year Go to Q28

• 4 or more times a year

Q28. Have you ever used ATUS data from any of the following non-BLS sources?

1. American Time Use Survey Data Extract Builder (ATUS-X) ○ Yes ○ No

2. American Heritage Time Use Study (AHTUS or AHTUS-X) ○ Yes ○ No

3. Multinational Time Use Study (MTUS or MTUS-X) ○ Yes ○ No

4. Other source - please describe below ○ Yes ○ No

Please describe the other source used

Go to Q34

Non-ATUS Users

Q29. Were you aware of the American Time Use Survey before deciding to participate in our survey today?

• Yes Go to Q30

• No Go to Q31

Q30. How did you learn about the ATUS? (Select all that apply)

• Social media

• Conference

• Coworker or colleague

• Internet search

• Media or press

• Research paper

• Teacher or professor

• Other (please specify)

Go to Q31

Q31. How much interest do you have in data about how people spend their time?

• A great deal of interest

• Some interest

• A little interest

• No interest

• Not sure, just exploring the topic

If Q31 = 4 (No interest) go to Q34; all else go to Q32.

Q32. Have you ever used time-use data from other sources?

• Yes – Please describe those sources

• No

Describe the other source(s) below

Go to Q33

Q33. Please indicate the primary reason why you have not used time-use data from the ATUS.

• Not familiar to me

• Difficult to use

• Not applicable to my current research

• Not applicable to my field of interest

• Not applicable to my business/profession

• Not timely enough

• Similar to data obtained from another source

• Other (please specify)

Go to Q34

Concluding Comments

Q34. Which category best describes the organization at which you work or study?

• Academia – Faculty

• Academia – Student

• U.S. Government – Federal

• State or local government

• News media

• Research organization

• Private business

• Nonprofit organization

• Independent consultant

• Data supplier/re-packager

• International organization

• Other (please specify)

Go to Q35

Q35. We appreciate any other comments you may have about time-use data, in general, or the American Time Use Survey specifically. Thank you.

Open-ended.

Exit Survey

Exit Screen

Thank you for completing the survey!

If you have any questions about the ATUS, please contact us at [email protected] or (202) 691-6339. For more information about the ATUS, please visit: http://www.bls.gov/tus.

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