Staying home is the new ‘going out’ after the pandemic 

Compared to the period just before the COVID-19 pandemic, individuals are now dedicating nearly an hour less each day to activities outside the home, a shift that researchers say is a lasting impact of the pandemic.

A study published in the Journal of the American Planning Association shows that daily time spent on out-of-home activities has decreased by approximately 51 minutes since 2019. 

Additionally, there was a nearly 12-minute reduction in time spent on daily travel, such as driving or using public transportation.

Staying at home after the pandemic

Based on a survey of 34,000 Americans, this analysis is the first to compare in-home versus out-of-home time following the pandemic. 

Researchers from Clemson University and the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) found a trend toward reduced out-of-home activity that dates back to at least 2003, with the pandemic significantly accelerating this shift toward home-based activities.

The shift toward spending more time at home, referred to as “going nowhere fast,” is expected to have wide-ranging effects on psychology, social behavior, and economic conditions. 

The study’s authors, who are urban planners, suggest that this reduced out-of-home activity should prompt changes in urban and transportation policies.

Urban and transportation policy adjustments

The scientists recommend that cities rethink how they use office and retail spaces due to the increase in remote work and online shopping. 

They suggest easing restrictions on converting commercial spaces to residential units and increasing curb space for delivery vehicles to accommodate the boom in online shopping.

“In a world where cities cannot rely on captive office workers and must work to attract residents, workers, and customers, local officials might seek to invest more heavily in their remaining strengths,” said lead author Eric A. Morris, a professor of city and regional planning at Clemson University.

“These include opportunities for recreation, entertainment, culture, arts, and more. Central cities might shift toward becoming centers of consumption more than production.”

Urban centers might leverage their appeal by developing multi-unit housing, which tends to attract younger residents and those who enjoy urban living. Such adjustments could also help lower housing and transportation expenses, benefiting lower-income communities and society at large.

In terms of transportation policy, the authors suggest a shift away from costly infrastructure aimed at accommodating peak travel demands and instead focusing on pedestrian and cyclist safety and improving basic mobility options for underprivileged travelers.

Advantages of staying close to home

While staying closer to home may involve certain disruptions, it also offers advantages, such as reducing travel time, fuel consumption, and emissions, which can save people time and money. However, increased time at home could lead to social isolation and other negative effects.

The study attributes part of this shift to advances in information technology and the way people learned to utilize these tools more effectively during the pandemic.

Pandemic effects on leisure time

The researchers analyzed work and leisure patterns using data from the American Time Use Survey (ATUS), a yearly review that tracks how Americans allocate their time. 

The ATUS, conducted by the United States Census Bureau and sponsored by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, has been running since 2003. The data for this study was compiled by the ATUS-X site managed by the University of Minnesota and the University of Maryland.

The researchers examined time use data from the years before, during, and after the pandemic – specifically 2019, 2021, 2022, and 2023. The year 2020 was excluded from analysis due to incomplete data collection during the height of the pandemic. The research focused on adults aged 17 and older.

The team categorized time into 16 in-home activities, such as sleep, exercise, and work, and 12 out-of-home activities, including attending arts events, shopping, working, and religious participation. Travel, by car, walking, or public transit (excluding air travel), was also analyzed separately.

Decrease in travel time

The study found that time spent on 8 of the 12 out-of-home activities decreased between 2019 and 2021, while 11 of the 16 in-home activities increased. 

Average out-of-home activity time dropped from 334 minutes per day in 2019 to 271 minutes in 2021 – a decline from roughly 5.5 hours to 4.5 hours per day. Although working from home contributed to this trend, other out-of-home activities saw significant decreases as well.

The decrease in travel time mirrored this pattern, with participants spending about 13 fewer minutes per day in transit. The study notes that this decline was not solely due to reduced commuting during the pandemic.

Staying at home persists

Time spent away from home has only partially rebounded since the pandemic. Between 2021 and 2023, out-of-home time increased by just 11 minutes, from 270 minutes to 281 minutes per day. 

However, this still represents a 53-minute drop compared to 2019. In 2023, out-of-home activity, travel, and seven types of out-of-home engagements remained below 2019 levels, while eight in-home activities remained elevated.

The researchers observed that this home-oriented trend has persisted into 2023, with minimal change compared to 2022.

Additional insights and continuing trends

Interestingly, while online shopping increased, it did not lead to a significant rise in time spent shopping at home, as the process is generally quicker than in-person shopping. 

Another surprising finding was that television viewing did not increase significantly, except during the initial pandemic phase. Meanwhile, many individuals have shifted their sports and exercise routines to home settings, likely driven by purchases of home gym equipment.

The authors note that this trend of spending more time at home has been developing for at least 16 years before the pandemic. 

Previous research they conducted indicated that out-of-home activity among adults dropped by about 1.8 minutes per year from 2003 to 2019, with travel time decreasing by about 30 seconds per year over the same period. 

However, the reductions observed during the pandemic were much greater than those suggested by previous trends. 

While improvements in technology may account for some of these changes, other patterns, like increased sleep duration, merit further investigation, the researchers conclude.

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