Eldercare in Japan: Cluster Analysis of Daily Time-Use Patterns of Elder Caregivers

Methods: Using the data of the 2006 Japanese Survey on Time Use and Leisure Activities, we perform cluster analysis and identify seven unique patterns of daily time-use patterns of co-resident family elder caregivers: (1) ‘Overworkers’, (2) ‘Full-time Workers’, (3) ‘Part-time Workers’, (4) ‘Intensive Caregivers’, (5) ‘Houseworkers’, (6) ‘Leisurely’, and (7) caregivers, who needed medical attention on the diary day (‘Emergency Diaries’). Results: Our results show that the ‘Houseworkers’ and ‘Intensive Caregivers’ spend the most time on adult caregiving activities. Care activities for ‘Houseworkers’ are more likely to coincide with longer housework hours, increasing the total unpaid work volume. Conclusions: The analysis of demographic profiles suggests that similar daily patterns on weekdays and weekends do not belong to people with the same demographic characteristics. For instance, although on weekdays, ‘Leisurely Caregivers’ are mostly represented by the elderly taking care of other elderly, people of any age can belong to this category on weekends. Among all types of caregivers, only 'Intensive Caregivers' are as likely to be men as they can be women, suggesting that when the need for eldercare increases, family caregivers of any gender will step in.