Children’s and parents’ time use: Empirical evidence on investment in human capital in France, Germany and Italy

Abstract We model time allocation choices by youngsters into activities related to the acquisition of human capital: study time, but also socialization, which can enhance personal interaction skills. Using multi-member household time use micro data, we run fractional regression and double hurdle models, providing new empirical evidence for France, Germany and Italy on the link between time allocation by parents and by youngsters, a channel disregarded in the literature on parental investment in children. Our results on the association between parents’ and children’s time use are consistent with different mechanisms: parental role model, intergenerational transmission of preferences, or network effects.