For release 10:00 a.m. (EDT) Wednesday, September 18, 2013 USDL-13-1886 

Technical information: (202) 691-6339 • atusinfo@bls.gov • www.bls.gov/tus 

Media contact: (202) 691-5902 • PressOffice@bls.gov 

UNPAID ELDERCARE IN THE UNITED STATES — 2011-2012

DATA FROM THE AMERICAN TIME USE SURVEY

Sixteen percent of the U.S. civilian noninstitutional population age 15 and over (39.6 million people) 

provide unpaid eldercare, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Nearly one-fourth of 

eldercare providers engage in unpaid eldercare on a given day, spending an average of 3.2 hours 

providing this care. These estimates are averages for the 2-year period of 2011-12; combining the 

2 years of data facilitates a more in-depth analysis of eldercare. 

Eldercare providers are defined as individuals who provide unpaid care to someone age 65 or older 

who needs help because of a condition related to aging. This care can be provided to household or 

nonhousehold members, as well as persons living in retirement homes or assisted care facilities. 

Eldercare can involve a range of care activities, such as assisting with grooming, preparing meals, and 

providing transportation. Eldercare also can involve providing companionship or being available to 

assist when help is needed, and thus it can be associated with nearly any activity.

Information about eldercare providers and the time they spend providing care were collected as part of 

the American Time Use Survey (ATUS). The ATUS is a continuous household survey that provides 

estimates on how people spend their time. For a description of ATUS data, concepts, and methodology, 

see the Technical Note. 

Eldercare providers in 2011-12 

 Of the 39.6 million eldercare providers in the civilian noninstitutional population age 15 and 

over, the majority (56 percent) were women. (See table 1.) 

 Individuals ages 45 to 54 and 55 to 64 were the most likely to provide eldercare (23 percent and 

22 percent, respectively), followed by those age 65 and over (16 percent). (See table 1.) 

 Half of eldercare providers had provided care for 2 years or less, while 15 percent had provided 

care for 10 years or more. (See table 2.) 

 The majority (70 percent) of eldercare providers cared for only one person. Twenty-two percent 

of eldercare providers cared for two persons, and 7 percent cared for three or more persons. (See 

table 2.) 
- 2 - 

 Eighty-five percent of eldercare providers cared only for persons with whom they did not live. 

(See table 2.) 

 Twenty-two percent of all eldercare providers were parents with children under age 18 living 

with them. (See table 2.) 

 Over half of eldercare providers ages 15 to 34 cared for a grandparent, while the majority of 

providers ages 35 to 64 cared for a parent. Providers ages 65 and over were more likely than 

those in other age groups to care for a friend or neighbor. (See table 3.) 

Time spent providing eldercare in 2011-12 

 On a given day, nearly one-fourth (23 percent) of eldercare providers engaged in eldercare. 

Eldercare providers who were ages 65 and older and those who were not employed were the 

most likely to provide care on a given day. (See table 4.) 

 On days they provided eldercare, persons spent an average of 3.2 hours in caregiving activities. 

Providers ages 65 and over spent the most time providing eldercare (4.1 hours), and providers 

ages 15 to 24 spent the least amount of time (1.3 hours). (See table 4.) 

 Eldercare providers were slightly more likely to provide care on weekend days than on weekdays 

(26 percent compared with 22 percent). They spent the same amount of time in caregiving on 

weekdays and weekend days when they provided care (3.2 hours). (See table 4.) 

 On days they provided eldercare, women spent more time providing this care than did men (3.5 

hours compared with 2.9 hours). (See table 5.) 

Eldercare activities in 2011-12 

 On days they provided care, 38 percent of eldercare providers engaged in caregiving associated 

with household activities, spending on average 40 minutes per day in these activities. This 

includes 28 percent of providers who engaged in eldercare associated with food preparation and 

cleanup and 12 percent who provided eldercare associated with housework. (See table 5.) 

 Thirty-six percent of eldercare providers engaged in caregiving associated with leisure and sports 

on days they provided care, spending 1.1 hours per day in these activities. This includes 23 

percent of eldercare providers who engaged in eldercare associated with socializing and 

communicating and 12 percent who provided care associated with watching TV. (See table 5.) 

 Women were more likely than men to provide eldercare associated with household activities on 

days they provided care (41 percent compared with 34 percent), whereas women and men were 

about equally likely to provide eldercare associated with leisure and sports (36 percent and 35 

percent). (See table 5.) 

 On days they provided care, 31 percent of persons caring for someone age 85 or older provided 

eldercare associated with socializing and communicating, compared with 15 percent of providers 

for someone age 65 to 74. (Data refer to providers caring for one person only.) (See table 8.) 
- 3 - 

Eldercare providers who were parents of household children under age 18 in 2011-12 

 There were 8.9 million eldercare providers whose children under age 18 lived with them. Of 

these parents, about one-third (32 percent) had a child under age 6, and the remainder (68 

percent) were parents whose youngest child was between the ages of 6 and 17. (See table 9.) 

 Forty-five percent of eldercare providers who were parents of household children provided care 

for their own parent. These persons sometimes are described as members of the “sandwich 

generation,” because they are in between two generations that require care. (See table 9.) 

 Most (78 percent) eldercare providers who were parents were employed, and 62 percent were 

employed full time. Eighty-three percent of fathers were employed full time, compared with 48 

percent of mothers. (See table 9.) 

 Seventeen percent of eldercare providers who were parents had no spouse or unmarried partner 

present in the household. (See table 9.) 

 Eldercare providers who were parents were less likely to provide daily care than the overall 

population of eldercare providers (13 percent compared with 20 percent). (See tables 2 and 9.) 
Technical Note 

The estimates in this release are from the American 

Time Use Survey (ATUS). The ATUS, which is conducted 

by the U.S. Census Bureau for the Bureau of Labor 

Statistics (BLS), is a continuous survey about how 

individuals age 15 and over spend their time. In the 2-year 

period of 2011-12, nearly 25,000 individuals were 

interviewed for the ATUS; of these, approximately 3,900 

individuals were identified as eldercare providers. Data for 

the combined years of 2011-12 were used to facilitate a 

more in-depth analysis of eldercare. 

Information in this release will be made available to 

sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 

(202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service: (800) 877-8339. 

Survey methodology 

ATUS sample households are chosen from the 

households that completed their eighth (final) interview for 

the Current Population Survey (CPS), the nation’s monthly 

household labor force survey. ATUS sample households are 

selected to ensure that estimates will be nationally 

representative of the civilian noninstitutional population. 

One individual age 15 or over is randomly chosen from 

each sampled household. This person is interviewed by 

telephone once about his or her activities on the day before 

the interview. 

All ATUS interviews are conducted using Computer 

Assisted Telephone Interviewing. Procedures are in place to 

collect information from the small number of households 

that did not provide a telephone number during the CPS 

interview. 

ATUS designated persons are preassigned a day of the 

week about which to report. Preassignment is designed to 

reduce variability in response rates across the week and to 

allow oversampling of weekend days so that accurate 

weekend day measures can be developed. Interviews occur 

on the day following the assigned day. For example, a 

person assigned to report about a Monday would be 

contacted on the following Tuesday. Ten percent of 

designated persons are assigned to report about each of the 

five weekdays. Twenty-five percent are assigned to report 

about each weekend day. Households are called for up to 8 

consecutive weeks (for example, 8 Tuesdays) in order to 

secure an interview. 

About the questionnaire 

In the time diary portion of the ATUS interview, 

survey respondents sequentially report activities they did 

between 4 a.m. on the day before the interview until 4 a.m. 

on the day of the interview. For each activity, respondents 

are asked how long the activity lasted. If respondents report 

doing more than one activity at a time, they are asked to 

identify which one was their main (primary) activity. After 

completing the time diary, interviewers ask additional 

questions, including questions to identify eldercare 

providers and activities done as eldercare. Questions on 

eldercare were added to the survey in 2011. 

After completing the interview, primary activity 

descriptions are assigned a single 6-digit code using the 

ATUS Coding Lexicon. The 3-tier coding system consists 

of 17 major activity categories, each with multiple secondand third-tier subcategories. These coding lexicon 

categories are then combined into composite categories for 

publication. Descriptions of categories shown in this release 

can be found in the Activity definitions section of this 

Technical Note. The ATUS Coding Lexicons can be 

accessed at www.bls.gov/tus/lexicons.htm. 

Concepts and definitions 

Average day. The average day measure reflects an 

average distribution across all persons in the reference 

population and all days of the week. 

Average hours per day. The average number of hours 

spent in a 24-hour day (between 4 a.m. on the diary day and 

4 a.m. on the interview day) doing a specified activity. 

 Average hours per day, population. The average 

number of hours per day is computed using all 

responses from a given population, including 

those of respondents who did not do a particular 

activity on their diary day. These estimates reflect 

how many population members engaged in an 

activity and the amount of time they spent doing 

it. 

 Average hours per day, persons who did the 

activity. The average number of hours per day is 

computed using only responses from those who 

engaged in a particular activity on their diary day. 

Condition related to aging. An ongoing ailment or 

physical or emotional limitation that typically affects older 

people, such as becoming more frail; having difficulty 

seeing, hearing, or physically moving; becoming more 

forgetful; tiring more quickly; or having specific medical 

ailments that are more common among older adults. It also 

refers to existing conditions that become progressively 

worse as one ages. 
Diary day. The diary day is the day about which the 

respondent reports. For example, the diary day of a 

respondent interviewed on Tuesday is Monday. 

Eldercare. Eldercare is providing unpaid care or 

assistance to an individual who needed help because of a 

condition related to aging. This care can be provided by a 

family member or non-family member. Care can be 

provided in the recipient’s home, the provider’s home, or a 

care facility, such as in a nursing home. 

Eldercare can involve a range of care activities, such 

as assisting with grooming and feeding, preparing meals, 

arranging medical care, and providing transportation. 

Eldercare also can involve providing companionship or 

being available to assist when help is needed, and thus it 

can be associated with nearly any activity. 

Estimates of the time spent providing eldercare are 

derived by summing the durations of activities during 

which respondents provided care or assistance for an adult 

who needed help because of a condition related to aging. 

These estimates never include times the respondent 

reported sleeping, grooming, or engaging in personal care 

services. 

Eldercare provider. An individual who provided 

eldercare more than one time in the 3 to 4 months prior to 

the interview day. The time frame varies slightly by 

respondent because the question asks about care provided 

between the first day of a given reference month and the 

interview day. Estimates are restricted to eldercare 

providers caring for at least one person age 65 or older. 

Employment status 

 Employed. All persons who, at any time during 

the 7 days prior to the interview: 

1) Did any work at all as paid employees; 

worked in their own business, profession, or on 

their own farm; or usually worked 15 hours or 

more as unpaid workers in a family member's 

business; or 

2) Were not working but had jobs or businesses 

from which they were temporarily absent due to 

illness, bad weather, vacation, childcare 

problems, labor-management disputes, maternity 

or paternity leave, job training, or other family or 

personal reasons, whether or not they were paid 

for the time off or were seeking other jobs. 

 Employed full time. Full-time workers are those 

who usually worked 35 hours or more per week at 

all jobs combined. 

 Employed part time. Part-time workers are those 

who usually worked fewer than 35 hours per 

week at all jobs combined. 

 Not employed. Persons are not employed if they 

do not meet the conditions for employment. The 

not employed include those classified as 

unemployed as well as those classified as not in 

the labor force (using CPS definitions). 

Household children. Household children are children 

under age 18 residing in the household of the ATUS 

respondent. 

Primary activity. A primary activity is the main 

activity a respondent was doing at a specified time. 

Weekday, weekend, and holiday estimates. Estimates 

for weekdays are an average of reports about Monday 

through Friday. Estimates for weekend days and holidays 

are an average of reports about Saturdays, Sundays, and the 

following holidays: New Year’s Day, Easter, Memorial 

Day, the Fourth of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, and 

Christmas Day. In 2011, the telephone call center was 

closed the day after Christmas Day, so data were not 

collected about this holiday. Data were not collected about 

New Year’s Day in 2012. 

Activity definitions 

The following definitions describe the activities 

associated with eldercare appearing in this report. These are 

diary activities that survey respondents identified as ones 

during which they had provided care or assistance for an 

adult who needed help because of a condition related to 

aging. 

Eating and drinking. All time spent eating or drinking, 

except eating and drinking done as part of a work or 

volunteer activity, is classified here. 

Household activities. Household activities are those 

done by persons to maintain their households. These 

include housework; cooking; lawn and garden care; pet 

care; vehicle maintenance and repair; home maintenance, 

repair, decoration, and renovation; and household 

management and organizational activities. Food 

preparation, whether or not reported as done specifically for 

another household member, is always classified as a 

household activity unless it was done as a volunteer, work, 

or income-generating activity. 

Purchasing goods and services. This category 

includes the time spent obtaining, receiving, and purchasing 

consumer goods, professional services, household services, 

and government services. Consumer purchases include 

most purchases and rentals of consumer goods. Professional 

services refer to financial services and banking, legal 

services, medical and adult care services, real estate 

services, and veterinary services. Household services 

include housecleaning; cooking; lawn care and landscaping; 

pet care; tailoring, laundering, and dry cleaning; vehicle 

maintenance and repairs; and home repairs, maintenance, 

and construction. This category also captures the time spent 

obtaining government services—such as applying for food 

stamps—and purchasing government-required licenses or 

paying fines or fees. 

Caring for and helping household members. Time 

spent doing activities to care for members of the household, 
regardless of relationship to the respondent or the physical 

or mental health status of the person being helped, is 

classified here. This category includes a range of activities 

done to benefit members of households, such as providing 

physical and medical care or obtaining medical services. 

Caring for and helping nonhousehold members. 

Caring for and helping nonhousehold members includes 

activities persons do to care for or help those who do not 

live with them. When done for or through an organization, 

time spent helping nonhousehold members is classified as 

volunteering, rather than as helping nonhousehold 

members. 

Working and work-related activities. This category 

includes time spent working, doing activities as part of 

one's job, engaging in income-generating activities (not as 

part of one's job), and job search activities. 

Organizational, civic, and religious activities. This 

category captures time spent volunteering for or through an 

organization, performing civic obligations, and 

participating in religious and spiritual activities. 

Leisure and sports. The leisure and sports category 

includes sports, exercise, and recreation; socializing and 

communicating; and other leisure activities. Sports, 

exercise, and recreation activities include participating in—

as well as attending or watching—sports, exercise, and 

recreational activities. Socializing and communicating 

includes face-to-face social communication and hosting or 

attending social functions. Leisure activities include 

watching television; reading; relaxing or thinking; playing 

computer, board, or card games; using a computer or the 

Internet for personal interest; playing or listening to music; 

and other activities, such as attending arts, cultural, and 

entertainment events. 

Telephone calls, mail, and e-mail. This category 

captures telephone communication and handling household 

or personal mail or e-mail. 

Traveling. This category includes all travel, regardless 

of mode or purpose, as well as security procedures related 

to traveling. 

Other activities, not elsewhere classified. This is a 

residual category intended to capture activities not 

elsewhere classified in each table. These might be 

ambiguous activities that could not be coded, missing 

activities, or activities that occurred very infrequently. 

Missing activities result when respondents do not remember 

what they did for a period of time, or when they consider an 

activity too private or personal to report. This category 

includes a small amount of time that was spent in 

educational activities, as no educational activities category 

appears in the tables. 

Processing and estimation 

After ATUS data are collected, they go through an 

editing and imputation procedure. Responses to CPS 

questions that are re-asked in the ATUS go through the 

regular CPS edit and imputation procedures. Some item 

nonresponses for questions unique to the ATUS also are 

imputed. 

ATUS records are weighted quarterly to reduce bias in 

the estimates due to differences in sampling and response 

rates across subpopulations and days of the week. 

Specifically, the data are weighted to ensure the following: 

 Weekdays represent about 5/7 of the weighted 

data, and weekend days represent about 2/7 of the 

weighted data for the population as a whole. The 

actual proportions depend on the number of 

weekdays and weekend days in a given quarter. 

 The sum of the weights is equal to the number of 

person-days in the quarter for the population as a 

whole and for selected subpopulations (the 

population times the number of days in the 

quarter). 

Reliability of the estimates 

Statistics based on the ATUS are subject to both 

sampling and nonsampling error. When a sample, rather 

than the entire population, is surveyed, estimates differ 

from the true population values they represent. The 

component of this difference that occurs because samples 

differ by chance is known as sampling error, and its 

variability is measured by the standard error of the estimate. 

Sample estimates from a given survey design are 

unbiased when an average of the estimates from all possible 

samples would yield, hypothetically, the true population 

value. In this case, the sample estimate and its standard 

error can be used to construct approximate confidence 

intervals, or ranges of values that include the true 

population value with known probabilities. If the process of 

selecting a sample from the population were repeated many 

times, an estimate made from each sample, and a suitable 

estimate of its standard error calculated for each sample, 

then approximately 90 percent of the intervals from 1.645 

standard errors below the estimate to 1.645 standard errors 

above the estimate would include the true population value. 

BLS analyses are generally conducted at the 90-percent 

level of confidence. 

The ATUS data also are affected by nonsampling 

error, which is the average difference between population 

and sample values for samples generated by a given 

process. Nonsampling error can occur for many reasons, 

including the failure to sample a segment of the population, 

inability to obtain information for all respondents in the 

sample, inability or unwillingness of respondents to provide 

correct information, and errors made in the collection or 

processing of the data. Errors also could occur if nonresponse is correlated with time use. 

Nonsampling error and eldercare. Eldercare done for 

a spouse or partner may be underreported, especially when 

the care provided has only recently become necessary. For 

example, a survey respondent who has always prepared the 

family dinner may not view cooking as an eldercare 

activity; if her husband is no longer capable of preparing his 

own meals, though, he depends on this assistance and it 

meets the definition of eldercare. 
Additionally, nonsampling error affects data on the 

frequency of care. Survey respondents were asked how 

often they provided eldercare in recent months and whether 

they provided eldercare on the diary day. Information about 

care provided on the diary day was used to calculate daily 

participation rates. There are some inconsistencies between 

the reported frequency of care and the actual provision of 

eldercare on an average day. For example, in 2011-12, only 

64 percent of eldercare providers who self-reported 

providing care "daily" actually provided eldercare on an 

average day. This discrepancy reflects some respondents’ 

choice of "daily" rather than "several times a week" or 

another option to best describe their eldercare frequency, 

even while acknowledging they had not provided care on 

the diary day. 

ATUS publication standards 

Estimates of average hours per day and participation 

rates are not published unless there are a minimum number 

of respondents representing the given population. 

Additional publication criteria are applied that include the 

number of respondents who reported doing a specified 

activity and the standard error or coefficient of variation for 

the estimate. Estimates that are considered "close to zero" 

or that round to 0.00, are published as approximately zero 

or "~0." For a detailed description of the statistical 

reliability criteria necessary for publication, please contact 

ATUS staff at ATUSinfo@bls.gov. 
Table 1. Number and percent of the U.S. population who were eldercare providers 1 by sex and selected characteristic

the combined years 2011-12

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

Total Men W

Civilian

noninstitutionalpopulation

Eldercare providers 1 Civilian

noninstitutionalpopulation

Eldercare providers 1 Civilian

noninstitutionalpopulation

Number Percent of population Number Percent of population N

Age

Total, 15 years and over ................................................. 245,521 39,564 16.1 118,933 17,500 14.7 126,588  15 to 24 years .............................................................. 42,553 5,330 12.5 21,579 2,569 11.9 20,975  25 to 34 years .............................................................. 41,170 4,050 9.8 20,484 2,035 9.9 20,686  35 to 44 years .............................................................. 39,570 5,060 12.8 19,431 2,301 11.8 20,140  45 to 54 years .............................................................. 43,773 10,106 23.1 21,397 4,267 19.9 22,377  55 to 64 years .............................................................. 37,656 8,366 22.2 18,110 3,517 19.4 19,546  65 years and over ........................................................ 40,797 6,652 16.3 17,932 2,810 15.7 22,865 

Race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity 2

White .............................................................................. 200,022 33,149 16.6 97,633 14,720 15.1 102,389 Black or African American .............................................. 29,561 4,678 15.8 13,238 1,806 13.6 16,323 Hispanic or Latino ethnicity ............................................. 36,452 3,792 10.4 18,534 1,943 10.5 17,919 

Employment status

Employed ........................................................................ 150,132 25,035 16.7 79,757 11,925 15.0 70,375  Full-time workers ......................................................... 114,946 18,680 16.3 66,967 9,893 14.8 47,979  Part-time workers ........................................................ 35,187 6,354 18.1 12,790 2,032 15.9 22,397 Not employed ................................................................. 95,389 14,529 15.2 39,176 5,575 14.2 56,213 

Educational attainment, 25 years and over

Less than a high school diploma .................................... 22,828 2,056 9.0 11,565 1,177 10.2 11,263 High school graduates, no college ................................. 63,398 10,062 15.9 30,554 4,597 15.0 32,844 Some college or associate degree ................................. 50,922 9,552 18.8 22,977 3,579 15.6 27,945 Bachelor’s degree and higher ......................................... 65,819 12,564 19.1 32,258 5,577 17.3 33,561 

Parent of household children under 18 years

Parent of one or more household children ..................... 67,676 8,873 13.1 29,651 3,505 11.8 38,025  Parent of a household child age 6 to 17, none younger 35,758 6,000 16.8 16,201 2,403 14.8 19,557  Parent of a household child under age 6 ...................... 31,918 2,873 9.0 13,450 1,102 8.2 18,468 Not a parent of a household child ................................... 177,845 30,691 17.3 89,282 13,995 15.7 88,564 

Marital status

No spouse or unmarried partner present in household .. 108,829 15,939 14.6 49,895 6,616 13.3 58,934 Spouse or unmarried partner present in household ....... 136,692 23,625 17.3 69,037 10,883 15.8 67,654 

 1 Eldercare providers are those who, in the previous 3 to 4 months, cared for someone with a condition related to aging. Estimates were calculated for pe

least one person age 65 or older.

 2 Not all race categories are shown. Persons of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity may be of any race.

NOTE: Unless otherwise specified, data refer to persons 15 years and over.
Table 2. Eldercare providers 1 by sex and selected characteristics related to care provided, averages for the combine

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

Eldercare providers 1

Total Men 

Number Percent Number Percent Numb

Total, 15 years and over ......................................................................................... 39,564 100.0 17,500 100.0 22,0

Parent of household children under 18 years

Parent of one or more household children ............................................................. 8,873 22.4 3,505 20.0 5,3 Parent of a household child age 6 to 17, none younger ....................................... 6,000 15.2 2,403 13.7 3,5 Parent of a household child under age 6 .............................................................. 2,873 7.3 1,102 6.3 1,7

Not a parent of a household child ........................................................................... 30,691 77.6 13,995 80.0 16,6

Number of care recipients 2

Caring for one person ............................................................................................. 27,785 70.2 12,019 68.7 15,7Caring for two persons ........................................................................................... 8,772 22.2 4,121 23.5 4,6Caring for three or more persons ........................................................................... 2,926 7.4 1,340 7.7 1,5

Relationship to care recipient

Total, all eldercare providers .................................................................................. 39,564 ( 3 ) 17,500 ( 3 ) 22,0

 Caring for a spouse or unmarried partner 4 ......................................................... 1,893 4.8 766 4.4 1,1

 Caring for a parent ............................................................................................... 16,804 42.5 7,004 40.0 9,7 Caring for a grandparent 5 ................................................................................... 7,312 18.5 3,300 18.9 4,0

 Caring for another related person ........................................................................ 8,095 20.5 3,964 22.7 4,1 Caring for a friend or neighbor ............................................................................. 7,491 18.9 3,419 19.5 4,0 Caring for someone else ..................................................................................... 2,859 7.2 1,302 7.4 1,5

 Eldercare providers caring for one person only ................................................... 27,785 100.0 12,019 100.0 15,7 Caring for a spouse or unmarried partner 4 ...................................................... 1,675 6.0 703 5.9 9 Caring for a parent ............................................................................................ 11,293 40.6 4,444 37.0 6,8 Caring for a grandparent 5 ................................................................................ 4,883 17.6 2,183 18.2 2,6

 Caring for another related person ..................................................................... 4,808 17.3 2,307 19.2 2,5 Caring for a friend or neighbor .......................................................................... 4,053 14.6 1,874 15.6 2,1 Caring for someone else .................................................................................. 1,073 3.9 507 4.2 5

See footnotes at end of table.
Table 2. Eldercare providers 1 by sex and selected characteristics related to care provided, averages for the combine

2011-12—Continued

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

Eldercare providers 1

Total Men 

Number Percent Number Percent Numb

Age of care recipient

Total, all eldercare providers .................................................................................. 39,564 ( 3 ) 17,500 ( 3 ) 22,0

 Caring for someone age 65 to 69 ....................................................................... 5,171 13.1 2,382 13.6 2,7 Caring for someone age 70 to 74 ....................................................................... 7,206 18.2 3,459 19.8 3,7 Caring for someone age 75 to 79 ....................................................................... 9,225 23.3 4,129 23.6 5,0 Caring for someone age 80 to 84 ....................................................................... 10,971 27.7 4,764 27.2 6,2 Caring for someone age 85 or older ................................................................... 14,530 36.7 6,195 35.4 8,3 Eldercare providers caring for one person only ................................................... 27,785 100.0 12,019 100.0 15,7 Caring for someone age 65 to 69 ................................................................... 2,839 10.2 1,191 9.9 1,6 Caring for someone age 70 to 74 ................................................................... 3,647 13.1 1,655 13.8 1,9 Caring for someone age 75 to 79 ................................................................... 5,045 18.2 2,121 17.6 2,9 Caring for someone age 80 to 84 ................................................................... 6,347 22.8 2,865 23.8 3,4 Caring for someone age 85 or older ............................................................... 9,907 35.7 4,186 34.8 5,7

Care of household or nonhousehold members

Provided eldercare to household member(s) only .................................................. 5,331 13.5 2,435 13.9 2,8Provided eldercare to nonhousehold member(s) only ............................................ 33,557 84.8 14,638 83.6 18,9Provided eldercare to both household and nonhousehold person(s) ..................... 676 1.7 426 2.4 2

Frequency of care 6

Provided care daily ................................................................................................. 7,771 19.6 3,190 18.2 4,5Provided care several times a week ....................................................................... 9,316 23.5 4,057 23.2 5,2Provided care once a week .................................................................................... 7,918 20.0 3,749 21.4 4,1Provided care several times a month ..................................................................... 7,557 19.1 3,163 18.1 4,3Provided care once a month ................................................................................... 5,040 12.7 2,490 14.2 2,5Other ....................................................................................................................... 1,962 5.0 849 4.9 1,1See footnotes at end of table.
Table 2. Eldercare providers 1 by sex and selected characteristics related to care provided, averages for the combine

2011-12—Continued

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

Eldercare providers 1

Total Men 

Number Percent Number Percent Numb

Duration of care 7

Provided care for less than 1 year .......................................................................... 9,056 22.9 3,644 20.8 5,4Provided care for 1 to 2 years ................................................................................ 10,655 26.9 4,814 27.5 5,8Provided care for 3 to 4 years ................................................................................ 6,633 16.8 2,982 17.0 3,6Provided care for 5 to 9 years ................................................................................ 7,133 18.0 3,165 18.1 3,9Provided care for 10 years or more ........................................................................ 6,087 15.4 2,894 16.5 3,1

 1 Eldercare providers are those who, in the previous 3 to 4 months, cared for someone with a condition related to aging. Estimates were calculated for pe

least one person age 65 or older.

 2 Data do not sum to total because some persons did not respond to the question identifying the number of care recipients. 3 Categories sum to more than 100 percent because some eldercare providers cared for more than one person. 4 Care for a spouse or unmarried partner may be underreported. See the Technical Note for more information. 5 Refers only to persons caring for a grandparent who did not live with them. Persons caring for a grandparent with whom they lived are included in the ca

another related person."

 6 Survey participants were asked how often they provided care in the past 3 to 4 months; this information was used to categorize them by frequency of ca 7 For persons who provided eldercare to more than 1 person, the duration of care is calculated based on the person for whom they had cared the longest.

NOTE: Data refer to persons 15 years and over.
Table 3. Eldercare providers 1 by relationship to care recipient and selected characteristics of eldercare providers, ave

combined years 2011-12

Characteristic

Number of

eldercare

providers

(in thousands)

Percent 2 of eldercare providers 1 caring for

A spouse or

unmarried

partner 3

A parent A grandparent 4 Another related person A friend 

neighb

Age

Total, 15 years and over ................................................... 39,564 4.8 42.5 18.5 20.5 18.9  15 to 24 years ................................................................ 5,330 ~0 7.5 68.6 15.6 11.6  25 to 34 years ................................................................ 4,050 ~0 16.0 55.2 11.0 18.5  35 to 44 years ................................................................ 5,060 ~0 51.6 18.7 20.3 15.8  45 to 54 years ................................................................ 10,106 1.0 66.3 4.1 23.5 13.7  55 to 64 years ................................................................ 8,366 2.4 58.9 .7 26.6 18.7  65 years and over .......................................................... 6,652 23.9 22.8 ~0 17.8 35.7 

Sex

Men ................................................................................... 17,500 4.4 40.0 18.9 22.7 19.5 Women ............................................................................. 22,064 5.1 44.4 18.2 18.7 18.5 

Race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity 5

White ................................................................................ 33,149 5.0 42.4 17.1 20.6 19.2 

Black or African American ................................................ 4,678 5.0 42.9 24.6 18.1 17.8 

Hispanic or Latino ethnicity ............................................... 3,792 4.3 35.7 21.0 22.6 17.4 

Employment status

Employed .......................................................................... 25,035 1.7 48.2 19.5 20.9 16.3 

 Full-time workers ........................................................... 18,680 1.2 52.1 18.0 20.5 14.9 

 Part-time workers .......................................................... 6,354 2.9 36.5 23.8 21.8 20.4 

Not employed ................................................................... 14,529 10.2 32.7 16.7 19.8 23.5 

Educational attainment, 25 years and over

Less than a high school diploma ...................................... 2,056 18.4 33.4 7.0 20.3 28.3 

High school graduates, no college ................................... 10,062 5.9 50.1 8.5 20.0 18.0 

Some college or associate degree ................................... 9,552 4.6 49.4 12.1 20.9 19.6 

Bachelor’s degree and higher ........................................... 12,564 3.9 47.4 11.9 22.6 20.8 

See footnotes at end of table.
Table 3. Eldercare providers 1 by relationship to care recipient and selected characteristics of eldercare providers, ave

combined years 2011-12—Continued

Characteristic

Number of

eldercare

providers

(in thousands)

Percent 2 of eldercare providers 1 caring for

A spouse or

unmarried

partner 3

A parent A grandparent 4 Another related person A friend 

neighb

Parent of household children under 18 years

Parent of one or more household children ....................... 8,873 0.1 45.3 22.2 23.6 18.0  Parent of a household child age 6 to 17, none younger 6,000 .2 53.3 12.1 26.7 18.1  Parent of a household child under age 6 ........................ 2,873 ~0 28.5 43.3 17.2 17.8 Not a parent of a household child ..................................... 30,691 6.1 41.7 17.4 19.6 19.2 

Marital status

No spouse or unmarried partner present in household .... 15,939 .6 35.6 30.4 12.7 21.7 Spouse or unmarried partner present in household ......... 23,625 7.6 47.1 10.5 25.7 17.1 

 1 Eldercare providers are those who, in the previous 3 to 4 months, cared for someone with a condition related to aging. Estimates were calculated for pe

least one person age 65 or older.

 2 Categories sum to more than 100 percent because some eldercare providers cared for multiple persons with whom they had different relationships. 3 Care for a spouse or unmarried partner may be underreported. See the Technical Note for more information. 4 Refers only to persons caring for a grandparent who did not live with them. Persons caring for a grandparent with whom they lived are included in the ca

person."

 5 Not all race categories are shown. Persons of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity may be of any race.

~0 Estimate is approximately zero.NOTE: Unless otherwise specified, data refer to persons 15 years and over.
Table 4. Percent of eldercare providers 1 who provided care on an average day and time spent providing this care by 

selected characteristics, averages for the combined years 2011-12

Characteristic

Number of

eldercare

providers

(in

thousands)

Percent of eldercare providers 1

who provided care on an average

day

Average hours per day eldercare

providers 1 spent providing care

Average h

providers 1 

days they 

Total, all

days Weekdays

Weekends

and

holidays

Total, all

days Weekdays

Weekends

and

holidays

Total, all

days 

Age

Total, 15 years and over ................................................. 39,564 23.0 21.9 25.7 0.74 0.71 0.83 3.22  15 to 24 years ............................................................... 5,330 15.4 15.4 15.2 .19 .21 .15 1.25  25 to 34 years ............................................................... 4,050 12.9 8.8 20.1 .38 ( 9 ) .66 2.99  35 to 44 years ............................................................... 5,060 20.5 20.0 21.6 .50 .47 .57 2.45  45 to 54 years ............................................................... 10,106 22.3 22.4 22.0 .73 .74 .71 3.27  55 to 64 years ............................................................... 8,366 26.0 22.9 33.6 .90 .80 1.13 3.45  65 years and over ......................................................... 6,652 34.7 33.6 37.3 1.41 1.38 1.48 4.07 

Sex

Men ................................................................................. 17,500 20.8 18.8 25.8 .60 .51 .80 2.86 Women ........................................................................... 22,064 24.8 24.4 25.6 .86 .86 .85 3.47 

Race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity 2

White .............................................................................. 33,149 22.3 20.9 25.2 .69 .65 .79 3.11 Black or African American .............................................. 4,678 30.5 30.8 30.0 1.12 1.11 1.16 3.68 Hispanic or Latino ethnicity ............................................. 3,792 28.1 31.6 21.1 .79 .88 .62 2.82 

Employment status

Employed ........................................................................ 25,035 19.1 17.5 22.8 .45 .39 .59 2.34  Full-time workers .......................................................... 18,680 17.9 16.1 22.0 .44 .37 .60 2.47  Part-time workers ......................................................... 6,354 22.6 21.4 25.4 .46 .43 .52 2.03 Not employed ................................................................. 14,529 29.8 29.5 30.5 1.25 1.26 1.22 4.20 

Educational attainment, 25 years and over

Less than a high school diploma .................................... 2,056 32.9 ( 9 ) 27.0 1.26 1.38 1.07 3.82 

High school graduates, no college ................................. 10,062 25.1 23.2 29.4 .82 .77 .93 3.26 Some college or associate degree ................................. 9,552 25.4 24.3 27.9 .95 .92 1.02 3.74 Bachelor’s degree and higher ......................................... 12,564 21.2 19.7 24.5 .67 .62 .79 3.18 

See footnotes at end of table.
Table 4. Percent of eldercare providers 1 who provided care on an average day and time spent providing this care by 

selected characteristics, averages for the combined years 2011-12—Continued

Characteristic

Number of

eldercare

providers

(in

thousands)

Percent of eldercare providers 1

who provided care on an average

day

Average hours per day eldercare

providers 1 spent providing care

Average h

providers 1 

days they 

Total, all

days Weekdays

Weekends

and

holidays

Total, all

days Weekdays

Weekends

and

holidays

Total, all

days 

Parent of household children under 18 years

Parent of one or more household children ..................... 8,873 17.4 16.9 18.5 0.53 0.51 0.59 3.07  Parent of a household child age 6 to 17, none younger 6,000 19.9 19.3 21.0 .65 .58 .78 3.25  Parent of a household child under age 6 ...................... 2,873 12.3 11.4 13.7 ( 9 ) ( 9 ) .22 ( 9 ) 

Not a parent of a household child ................................... 30,691 24.6 23.2 28.0 .80 .76 .90 3.26 

Marital status

No spouse or unmarried partner present in household .. 15,939 24.1 23.6 25.4 .71 .71 .71 2.94 Spouse or unmarried partner present in household ....... 23,625 22.3 20.6 25.9 .76 .70 .90 3.43 

Number of care recipients 3

Caring for one person ..................................................... 27,785 24.5 24.0 25.7 .84 .80 .94 3.44 Caring for two persons ................................................... 8,772 19.4 16.3 25.9 .51 .47 .58 2.62 Caring for three or more persons ................................... 2,926 20.5 18.1 25.9 .50 .47 .59 2.46 

Relationship to care recipient 4

Eldercare providers caring for one person only .............. 27,785 24.5 24.0 25.7 .84 .80 .94 3.44  Caring for a spouse or unmarried partner 5 ................. 1,675 71.4 ( 9 ) ( 9 ) 3.98 4.03 3.89 5.58 

 Caring for a parent ....................................................... 11,293 28.5 28.3 29.0 .94 .90 1.04 3.31  Caring for a grandparent 6 ........................................... 4,883 13.2 13.2 13.3 .25 ( 9 ) .26 1.91 

 Caring for another related person ................................ 4,808 20.3 18.1 25.1 .64 .51 ( 9 ) 3.13 

 Caring for a friend or neighbor ..................................... 4,053 14.8 14.5 15.6 .28 .28 ( 9 ) 1.90 

See footnotes at end of table.
Table 4. Percent of eldercare providers 1 who provided care on an average day and time spent providing this care by 

selected characteristics, averages for the combined years 2011-12—Continued

Characteristic

Number of

eldercare

providers

(in

thousands)

Percent of eldercare providers 1

who provided care on an average

day

Average hours per day eldercare

providers 1 spent providing care

Average h

providers 1 

days they 

Total, all

days Weekdays

Weekends

and

holidays

Total, all

days Weekdays

Weekends

and

holidays

Total, all

days 

Age of care recipient

Eldercare providers caring for one person only .............. 27,785 24.5 24.0 25.7 0.84 0.80 0.94 3.44  Caring for someone age 65 to 69 ................................. 2,839 23.6 24.2 22.4 .52 9 ( ) .53 2.20 

 Caring for someone age 70 to 74 ................................. 3,647 22.4 19.6 29.0 .79 .75 .86 3.51  Caring for someone age 75 to 79 ................................. 5,045 25.5 25.6 25.2 .88 .87 .91 3.46  Caring for someone age 80 to 84 ................................. 6,347 25.3 26.5 22.4 .83 .86 .74 3.26  Caring for someone age 85 or older ............................. 9,907 24.5 23.1 27.6 .95 .83 1.22 3.87 

Care of household or nonhousehold members 4

Provided eldercare to household member(s) only .......... 5,331 65.2 64.7 66.3 2.86 2.78 3.04 4.38 Provided eldercare to nonhousehold member(s) only .... 33,557 16.3 15.2 18.8 .41 .39 .46 2.52 

Frequency of care 7

Provided care daily ......................................................... 7,771 64.4 63.3 67.0 2.64 2.57 2.80 4.10 Provided care several times a week ............................... 9,316 25.5 25.7 25.1 .57 .58 .56 2.24 Provided care once a week ............................................ 7,918 10.7 7.0 19.4 .23 .16 .40 2.17 Provided care several times a month ............................. 7,557 7.9 7.4 8.9 .14 .13 .17 1.77 Provided care once a month ........................................... 5,040 2.2 1.8 3.3 .05 9 ( ) .09 2.36 

Duration of care 8

Provided care for less than 1 year .................................. 9,056 17.5 17.7 17.0 .52 .53 .51 2.97 Provided care for 1 to 2 years ........................................ 10,655 22.9 22.2 24.4 .75 .79 .66 3.29 Provided care for 3 to 4 years ........................................ 6,633 27.6 25.1 33.6 .94 .97 .88 3.41 Provided care for 5 to 9 years ........................................ 7,133 25.5 24.7 27.1 .80 .62 1.17 3.12 Provided care for 10 years or more ................................ 6,087 23.6 20.8 30.3 .78 .64 1.09 3.28 

 1 Eldercare providers are those who, in the previous 3 to 4 months, cared for someone with a condition related to aging. Estimates were calculated for pe

least one person age 65 or older.

 2 Not all race categories are shown. Persons of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity may be of any race. 3 Data do not sum to total because some persons did not respond to the question identifying the number of care recipients. 4 Not all categories are shown. 5 Care for a spouse or unmarried partner may be underreported. See the Technical Note for more information. 6 Refers only to persons caring for a grandparent who did not live with them. Persons caring for a grandparent with whom they lived are included in the ca

another related person."

 7 Survey participants were asked how often they provided care in the past 3 to 4 months; this information was used to categorize them by frequency of ca

and percent estimates were measured using information about care provided on the diary day. Not all categories are shown.

 8 For persons who provided eldercare to more than one person, the duration of care is calculated based on the person for whom they had cared the longe

9 Estimate is suppressed because it does not meet the American Time Use Survey publication standards.

NOTE: Unless otherwise specified, data refer to persons 15 years and over.
Table 5. Time spent providing eldercare and percent of eldercare providers 1 engaging in caregiving by sex and careg

averages for the combined years 2011-12

Caregiving activity

Eldercare providers 1

On days they provided care

Percent distribution of time spent in

selected eldercare activities Percent 2 who engaged in

caregiving activity Average hou

Total Men Women Total Men Women Total 

Total, activities reported as care done for those age 65 and over .... 100.0 100.0 100.0 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 3.22 

 Eating and drinking ......................................................................... 7.1 6.2 7.5 22.2 20.4 23.5 .23  Household activities ........................................................................ 20.9 19.2 21.9 38.2 34.0 41.1 .67  Housework .................................................................................... 6.3 4.2 7.5 11.5 8.3 13.6 .20  Food preparation and cleanup ...................................................... 9.5 8.3 10.1 28.1 23.5 31.1 .31  Lawn and garden care .................................................................. 1.9 2.7 1.5 3.5 4.1 3.1 .06  Household management .............................................................. 1.2 .9 1.4 5.8 4.8 6.6 .04  Purchasing goods and services ...................................................... 4.2 4.3 4.1 14.5 13.7 15.0 .13  Caring for and helping household members ................................... 6.4 6.1 6.5 19.0 18.2 19.6 .21  Caring for household adults .......................................................... 5.3 4.8 5.6 15.7 15.0 16.2 .17  Physical care for household adults ............................................. 3.2 1.7 4.1 8.6 7.8 9.1 .10  Providing medical care to household adults ............................... .7 .8 .7 7.0 7.1 6.9 .02  Helping household adults ............................................................. .6 1.0 .4 4.1 5.6 3.2 .02  Caring for and helping nonhousehold members ............................. 10.1 9.1 10.6 24.7 21.0 27.2 .33  Caring for nonhousehold adults .................................................... 3.7 1.8 4.7 8.9 4.5 11.8 .12  Physical care for nonhousehold adults ....................................... 1.8 1.0 2.2 4.1 1.7 5.7 .06  Providing medical care to nonhousehold adults ......................... .4 .1 .6 2.5 1.5 3.2 .01 

 Helping nonhousehold adults ....................................................... 6.2 7.3 5.6 17.6 18.1 17.3 .20  Housework, cooking, and shopping assistance for

 nonhousehold adults ................................................................ 2.3 1.8 2.5 6.1 6.3 5.9 .07 

 House and lawn maintenance and repair assistance for

 nonhousehold adults ................................................................ 1.8 2.6 1.4 2.5 3.6 1.8 .06 

 Picking up and dropping off nonhousehold adults ...................... .6 .6 .6 6.1 4.1 7.3 .02  Working and work-related activities ................................................ 4.4 5.4 3.9 3.7 4.0 3.6 .14  Organizational, civic, and religious activities .................................. 2.4 1.9 2.7 4.4 3.4 5.1 .08  Leisure and sports .......................................................................... 33.7 38.5 31.0 35.8 35.2 36.2 1.09  Socializing and communicating .................................................... 13.1 13.0 13.1 23.4 22.1 24.3 .42  Watching TV ................................................................................. 13.7 19.1 10.7 11.6 10.2 12.5 .44  Participating in sports, exercise, and recreation ........................... 1.5 1.7 1.4 2.7 3.5 2.1 .05  Telephone calls, mail, and e-mail ................................................... 1.0 .5 1.3 5.8 4.3 6.8 .03  Traveling ......................................................................................... 8.1 7.0 8.7 27.1 25.8 27.9 .26  Other activities, not elsewhere classified ........................................ 1.8 1.7 1.8 5.4 4.0 6.3 .06 

 1 Eldercare providers are those who, in the previous 3 to 4 months, cared for someone with a condition related to aging. Estimates were calculated for pe

least one person age 65 or older.

 2 Percents sum to more than 100 percent because some eldercare providers did more than one care activity on days they provided care. 3 Estimate is suppressed because it does not meet the American Time Use Survey publication standards.

NOTE: Data refer to persons 15 years and over.
Table 6. Time spent providing eldercare and percent of eldercare providers 1 engaging in caregiving by day of week a

activity, averages for the combined years 2011-12

Caregiving activity

Eldercare providers 1

On days they provided care

Percent distribution of time spent in

selected eldercare activities Percent 2 who engaged in

caregiving activity Average hou

Total Weekdays

Weekends

and

holidays

Total Weekdays

Weekends

and

holidays

Total 

Total, activities reported as care done for those age 65 and over .... 100.0 100.0 100.0 ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 3.22 

 Eating and drinking ......................................................................... 7.1 5.9 9.2 22.2 20.2 26.3 .23  Household activities ........................................................................ 20.9 21.1 20.5 38.2 39.9 35.0 .67  Housework .................................................................................... 6.3 6.9 5.1 11.5 11.3 11.8 .20  Food preparation and cleanup ...................................................... 9.5 9.4 9.7 28.1 30.3 23.8 .31  Lawn and garden care .................................................................. 1.9 1.6 2.7 3.5 3.4 3.6 .06  Household management .............................................................. 1.2 1.3 1.0 5.8 6.8 4.0 .04  Purchasing goods and services ...................................................... 4.2 4.5 3.5 14.5 15.3 12.8 .13  Caring for and helping household members ................................... 6.4 6.7 5.7 19.0 20.8 15.6 .21  Caring for household adults .......................................................... 5.3 5.6 4.8 15.7 16.7 13.7 .17  Physical care for household adults ............................................. 3.2 2.9 3.8 8.6 8.6 8.5 .10  Providing medical care to household adults ............................... .7 .6 .9 7.0 6.8 7.2 .02  Helping household adults ............................................................. .6 .6 .6 4.1 4.7 3.1 .02  Caring for and helping nonhousehold members ............................. 10.1 10.3 9.6 24.7 24.7 24.8 .33  Caring for nonhousehold adults .................................................... 3.7 4.6 1.9 8.9 10.0 6.7 .12  Physical care for nonhousehold adults ....................................... 1.8 1.9 1.6 4.1 4.0 4.4 .06  Providing medical care to nonhousehold adults ......................... .4 .5 .1 2.5 2.8 2.0 .01  Helping nonhousehold adults ....................................................... 6.2 5.4 7.6 17.6 17.2 18.3 .20  Housework, cooking, and shopping assistance for

 nonhousehold adults ................................................................ 2.3 2.0 2.8 6.1 5.8 6.5 .07 

 House and lawn maintenance and repair assistance for

 nonhousehold adults ................................................................ 1.8 1.1 3.3 2.5 1.9 3.7 .06 

 Picking up and dropping off nonhousehold adults ...................... .6 .6 .6 6.1 6.2 5.7 .02  Working and work-related activities ................................................ 4.4 4.6 4.0 3.7 4.2 2.8 .14  Organizational, civic, and religious activities .................................. 2.4 2.0 3.1 4.4 3.6 6.0 .08  Leisure and sports .......................................................................... 33.7 32.2 36.5 35.8 34.3 38.6 1.09  Socializing and communicating .................................................... 13.1 12.3 14.6 23.4 22.6 24.9 .42  Watching TV ................................................................................. 13.7 12.8 15.5 11.6 10.5 13.8 .44  Participating in sports, exercise, and recreation ........................... 1.5 2.0 .5 2.7 3.3 1.5 .05  Telephone calls, mail, and e-mail ................................................... 1.0 1.0 1.0 5.8 6.2 5.1 .03  Traveling ......................................................................................... 8.1 9.8 4.8 27.1 30.3 20.7 .26  Other activities, not elsewhere classified ........................................ 1.8 1.7 2.0 5.4 6.3 3.6 .06 

 1 Eldercare providers are those who, in the previous 3 to 4 months, cared for someone with a condition related to aging. Estimates were calculated for pe

least one person age 65 or older.

 2 Percents sum to more than 100 percent because some eldercare providers did more than one care activity on days they provided care. 3 Estimate is suppressed because it does not meet the American Time Use Survey publication standards.

~0 Estimate is approximately zero.NOTE: Data refer to persons 15 years and over.
Table 7. Percent of eldercare providers 1 and time spent in caregiving on days they provided care by frequency of car

caregiving activity, averages for the combined years 2011-12

Caregiving activity

Percent 2 of eldercare providers 1 who engaged

in caregiving activities, on days they provided

care

Average hours per day eldercare pr

spent providing care on days they en

eldercare

Total

Frequency of care 3

Total

Frequency of car

Daily

Several

times per

week

Once a

week or

less

Daily

Several

times per

week

Total, activities reported as care done for those age 65 and over .... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) 3.22 4.10 2.24 

 Eating and drinking ......................................................................... 22.2 30.5 13.7 9.1 .23 .32 .12  Household activities ........................................................................ 38.2 50.1 27.2 18.7 .67 1.02 .31  Housework .................................................................................... 11.5 15.9 7.0 4.5 .20 .30 .12  Food preparation and cleanup ...................................................... 28.1 41.9 11.7 10.0 .31 .48 .11  Lawn and garden care .................................................................. 3.5 4.0 3.8 1.9 .06 .08 4 ( )  Household management .............................................................. 5.8 6.8 5.6 3.3 .04 .05 4 ( )  Purchasing goods and services ...................................................... 14.5 15.3 14.0 13.4 .13 .14 .15  Caring for and helping household members ................................... 19.0 31.1 1.9 8.3 .21 .33 4 ( )  Caring for household adults .......................................................... 15.7 26.8 .3 5.2 .17 .28 4 ( )  Physical care for household adults ............................................. 8.6 15.5 .3 ~0 .10 .19 4 ( )  Providing medical care to household adults ............................... 7.0 11.8 .3 2.5 .02 .04 4 ( )  Helping household adults ............................................................. 4.1 6.5 .5 2.5 .02 .03 4 ( )  Caring for and helping nonhousehold members ............................. 24.7 13.9 40.2 32.5 .33 .24 .43  Caring for nonhousehold adults .................................................... 8.9 6.9 14.2 7.7 .12 .09 .15  Physical care for nonhousehold adults ....................................... 4.1 3.8 5.3 3.7 .06 .06 .07  Providing medical care to nonhousehold adults ......................... 2.5 2.1 4.0 1.7 .01 .01 .03  Helping nonhousehold adults ....................................................... 17.6 8.6 30.6 26.6 .20 .15 .28  Housework, cooking, and shopping assistance for

 nonhousehold adults ................................................................ 6.1 2.7 12.5 7.6 .07 .04 .12 

 House and lawn maintenance and repair assistance for

 nonhousehold adults ................................................................ 2.5 1.6 2.3 6.0 .06 4 ( ) .04 

 Picking up and dropping off nonhousehold adults ...................... 6.1 3.1 10.5 8.3 .02 .01 .04  Working and work-related activities ................................................ 3.7 4.6 3.6 1.4 .14 .21 4 ( ) 

 Organizational, civic, and religious activities .................................. 4.4 5.0 3.2 4.6 .08 .07 .08  Leisure and sports .......................................................................... 35.8 38.7 31.0 34.8 1.09 1.42 .62  Socializing and communicating .................................................... 23.4 20.4 25.5 31.4 .42 .34 .49  Watching TV ................................................................................. 11.6 19.3 2.4 1.8 .44 .76 .04  Participating in sports, exercise, and recreation ........................... 2.7 3.9 .2 2.3 .05 .05 4 ( )  Telephone calls, mail, and e-mail ................................................... 5.8 5.8 5.7 6.1 .03 .04 .03  Traveling ......................................................................................... 27.1 25.8 27.6 31.8 .26 .23 4 ( )  Other activities, not elsewhere classified ........................................ 5.4 6.7 4.5 2.9 .06 .08 4 ( ) 

 1 Eldercare providers are those who, in the previous 3 to 4 months, cared for someone with a condition related to aging. Estimates were calculated for pe

cared for at least one person age 65 or older.

 2 Percents sum to more than 100 percent because some eldercare providers did more than one care activity on days they provided care. 3 Survey participants were asked how often they provided care in the past 3 to 4 months; this information was used to categorize them by frequency of ca

4 Estimate is suppressed because it does not meet the American Time Use Survey publication standards.

~0 Estimate is approximately zero.NOTE: Data refer to persons 15 years and over.
Table 8. Percent of eldercare providers 1 who cared for one person only by age of eldercare recipient and

caregiving activity, averages for the combined years 2011-12

Caregiving activity

Percent 2 of eldercare providers 1 who cared for one person only, on days they

provided care

Total

Age of care recipient

65 to 74 75 to 84 85 or older

Total, activities reported as care done for those age 65 and over .... ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 ) ( 2 )

 Eating and drinking ......................................................................... 23.8 17.3 23.6 28.1 Household activities ........................................................................ 41.3 38.0 41.9 42.5 Housework .................................................................................... 13.1 11.7 13.2 14.0 Food preparation and cleanup ...................................................... 32.0 24.8 32.5 35.8 Lawn and garden care .................................................................. 3.4 2.7 4.2 3.0 Household management .............................................................. 5.7 7.4 5.8 4.5 Purchasing goods and services ...................................................... 15.1 12.6 17.7 13.4 Caring for and helping household members ................................... 22.5 24.8 20.0 24.2 Caring for household adults .......................................................... 18.8 19.4 16.8 20.8 Physical care for household adults ............................................. 10.5 7.6 11.0 11.6 Providing medical care to household adults ............................... 8.4 12.0 6.1 9.0 Helping household adults ............................................................. 5.0 6.6 4.2 5.0 Caring for and helping nonhousehold members ............................. 22.2 19.9 26.8 18.2 Caring for nonhousehold adults .................................................... 8.4 8.8 9.0 7.5 Physical care for nonhousehold adults ....................................... 3.4 4.3 3.1 3.3 Providing medical care to nonhousehold adults ......................... 2.2 1.4 2.9 1.9 Helping nonhousehold adults ....................................................... 15.0 11.2 18.5 13.3 Housework, cooking, and shopping assistance for

 nonhousehold adults ................................................................ 4.9 5.7 5.2 4.2

 House and lawn maintenance and repair assistance for

 nonhousehold adults ................................................................ 1.8 .2 2.4 2.0

 Picking up and dropping off nonhousehold adults ...................... 4.3 .5 7.4 2.8 Working and work-related activities ................................................ 4.1 4.1 3.4 5.0 Organizational, civic, and religious activities .................................. 4.3 7.0 2.7 4.5 Leisure and sports .......................................................................... 35.3 26.7 31.8 44.7 Socializing and communicating .................................................... 21.5 14.7 17.3 30.7 Watching TV ................................................................................. 13.4 10.2 12.6 16.2 Participating in sports, exercise, and recreation ........................... 2.9 1.2 2.6 4.3 Telephone calls, mail, and e-mail ................................................... 4.9 1.6 4.3 7.5 Traveling ......................................................................................... 26.6 25.7 28.3 25.1 Other activities, not elsewhere classified ........................................ 5.6 9.0 4.6 4.6

 1 Eldercare providers are those who, in the previous 3 to 4 months, cared for someone with a condition related to aging. Estimates were

calculated for persons who cared for at least one person age 65 or older.

 2 Percents sum to more than 100 percent because some eldercare providers did more than one care activity on days they provided care.

NOTE: Data refer to persons 15 years and over.
Table 9. Number and percent of eldercare providers 1 who were parents of household children under age 18 by sex a

selected characteristics, averages for the combined years 2011-12

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

Eldercare providers 1 with children under age 18 living at home

Total Men Women

Number Percent Number Percent Number Percen

Parent of household children under 18 years

Total, parent of one or more household children .............. 8,873 100.0 3,505 100.0 5,368 100.0 Parent of a household child age 6 to 17, none younger 6,000 67.6 2,403 68.6 3,597 67.0 Parent of a household child under age 6 ........................ 2,873 32.4 1,102 31.4 1,771 33.0

Employment status

Employed .......................................................................... 6,911 77.9 3,122 89.1 3,789 70.6 Full-time workers ........................................................... 5,484 61.8 2,900 82.7 2,584 48.1 Part-time workers .......................................................... 1,427 16.1 222 6.3 1,205 22.4Not employed ................................................................... 1,962 22.1 383 10.9 1,579 29.4

Marital status

No spouse or unmarried partner present in household .... 1,464 16.5 218 6.2 1,246 23.2Spouse or unmarried partner present in household ......... 7,409 83.5 3,287 93.8 4,122 76.8

Number of care recipients 2

Caring for one person ....................................................... 6,082 68.5 2,201 62.8 3,882 72.3

Caring for two persons ..................................................... 1,994 22.5 835 23.8 1,159 21.6Caring for three or more persons ..................................... 789 8.9 464 13.3 325 6.1

Relationship to care recipient

Total, all eldercare providers ............................................ 8,873 ( 3 ) 3,505 ( 3 ) 5,368 ( 3 )

 Caring for a spouse or unmarried partner 4 ................... 12 .1 ~0 ~0 12 .2

 Caring for a parent ......................................................... 4,020 45.3 1,636 46.7 2,384 44.4

 Caring for a grandparent 5 ............................................. 1,970 22.2 612 17.5 1,357 25.3

 Caring for another related person .................................. 2,095 23.6 925 26.4 1,170 21.8 Caring for a friend or neighbor ....................................... 1,599 18.0 680 19.4 919 17.1

 Caring for someone else ............................................... 524 5.9 270 7.7 254 4.7

Age of care recipient

Total, all eldercare providers ............................................ 8,873 ( 3 ) 3,505 ( 3 ) 5,368 ( 3 )

 Caring for someone age 65 to 69 ................................. 1,572 17.7 665 19.0 908 16.9 Caring for someone age 70 to 74 ................................. 2,161 24.4 1,099 31.4 1,061 19.8 Caring for someone age 75 to 79 ................................. 2,216 25.0 901 25.7 1,314 24.5 Caring for someone age 80 to 84 ................................. 2,282 25.7 872 24.9 1,409 26.3 Caring for someone age 85 or older ............................. 2,550 28.7 875 25.0 1,675 31.2

See footnotes at end of table.
Table 9. Number and percent of eldercare providers 1 who were parents of household children under age 18 by sex a

selected characteristics, averages for the combined years 2011-12—Continued

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

Eldercare providers 1 with children under age 18 living at home

Total Men Women

Number Percent Number Percent Number Percen

Care of household or nonhousehold members 6

Provided eldercare to household member(s) only ............ 645 7.3 210 6.0 435 8.1

Provided eldercare to nonhousehold member(s) only ...... 8,168 92.0 3,274 93.4 4,894 91.2

Frequency of care 7

Provided care daily ........................................................... 1,164 13.1 347 9.9 816 15.2

Provided care several times a week ................................. 2,204 24.8 874 24.9 1,330 24.8

Provided care once a week .............................................. 1,998 22.5 765 21.8 1,233 23.0Provided care several times a month ............................... 1,896 21.4 840 24.0 1,056 19.7

Provided care once a month ............................................. 1,163 13.1 501 14.3 662 12.3

Other ................................................................................. 448 5.0 178 5.1 270 5.0

Duration of care 8

Provided care for less than 1 year .................................... 2,022 22.8 737 21.0 1,285 23.9

Provided care for 1 to 2 years .......................................... 2,317 26.1 909 25.9 1,408 26.2Provided care for 3 to 4 years .......................................... 1,328 15.0 502 14.3 826 15.4Provided care for 5 to 9 years .......................................... 1,650 18.6 728 20.8 922 17.2Provided care for 10 years or more .................................. 1,556 17.5 629 17.9 928 17.3

 1 Eldercare providers are those who, in the previous 3 to 4 months, cared for someone with a condition related to aging. Estimates were calculated for pe

who cared for at least one person age 65 or older.

 2 Data do not sum to total because some persons did not respond to the question identifying the number of care recipients. 3 Categories sum to more than 100 percent because some eldercare providers cared for more than one person. 4 Care for a spouse or unmarried partner may be underreported. See the Technical Note for more information. 5 Refers only to persons caring for a grandparent who did not live with them. Persons caring for a grandparent with whom they lived are included in the

category "Caring for another related person."

 6 Not all subcategories are shown. 7 Survey participants were asked how often they provided care in the past 3 to 4 months; this information was used to categorize them by frequency of ca 8 For persons who provided eldercare to more than 1 person, the duration of care is calculated based on the person for whom they had cared the longest.

~0 Estimate is approximately zero.NOTE: Data refer to persons 15 years and over.