The New York Times offers an interactive and visual window on the American Time Use Survey, that massive longitudinal research project of the United States Department of Labor. Through over 85,000 interviews spanning five years, the ATUS has gathered ”nationally representative estimates of how, where, and with whom
Americans spend their time”…information that should have most arts managers (and specifically arts marketers) salivating.
Of course, the challenge with such massive datasets is digging through them to find the useful patterns. Which is what makes the Times interactive such a handy tool. With it, you can view an average day for individuals in certain groups (by employment status, ethnic heritage, age, number of children, educational attainment), and drag through it hour-by-hour for more specific insights.
For example, pick any subgroup, and drag to the start time of your evening performances, or drag through the public hours of your facility to see how your prospective audience is otherwise engaged. How would you redesign your service hours in response to these graphs?
