Geoffrey Godbey

Is it possible that Americans have more free time than they did thirty years ago? While few may believe it, research based on careful records of how we actually spend our time shows that we average more than an hour more free time per day than in the 1960s. Time-use experts John P. Robinson and Geoffrey Godbey received national attention when their controversial findings were first published in 1997. Now the book is updated, with a new chapter that includes results of the 1995–1997 data from the Americans' Use of Time Project.

This is a study of the leisure time of Americans in the present day as opposed to 30 years ago. It emphasises that, although many Americans feel more rushed and stressed than ever before, they actually have more free time, which is simply wasted in activities such as television watching.