Callister & Associates
- economic and social research -
Selected 2003 Papers
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Overwork, work schedules, working at home and time spent with family members: How time use data can inform work/life policy
Callister, P. (2003) Working paper, October.
Download paper 'Work-life balance in New Zealand' [PDF 198KB]
Abstract: In many industrialised countries, concern has arisen regarding the potential impact of overwork on the quality of family life. Evidence also suggests that time spent in paid work is related to earning potential, with income playing an important role in family well-being. Finding an optimal balance between paid work effort and family time presents a challenge for many people. Yet, time away from family may be overestimated using the simple measure of the number of hours worked.
New Zealand time use data indicate that information on when and where work is carried out is important when considering how people endeavor to juggle working and at home time. The paper suggests that those individuals in the higher skilled occupations generally have more control over when and where they work than those in lower skilled jobs. Through this higher level of control, they may be working longer hours, and earning higher incomes, but still be achieving a better work/life balance than those in lower skilled, lower status and lower paid occupations. Policy makers need to take into account not only hours of paid work, but work schedules and where work is carried out, when considering strategies for improving the work/life balance of New Zealand workers.
The allocation of ethnicity to children in New Zealand: Some descriptive data from the 2001 census
Callister, P. (2003) Paper presented at the Population Association of New Zealand conference, Christchurch, 3-4 July.
Download paper 'The allocation of ethnicity to children in New Zealand' [PDF 219KB]
Abstract: Based on descriptive data from the 2001 census, this paper examines the way in which ethnicity is allocated to children. It expands on recent research on the transmission of ethnicity by bringing in a wider range of single ethnic groups and more combinations of ethnic groups. It also explores differences in the allocation of ethnicity by sole parents and two parent households.
The census data indicate that in many households the transmission of ethnicity from parents to children is not a straightforward process. In particular, if one or both parents affiliate with more than one ethnic group, then there is a range of options open with regards to choosing the ethnic group(s) that the child belongs to. When children are able to be allocated to more than one ethnic group, then in a significant proportion of two parent households the ethnicity of both parents, rather than that of just the mother or the father, influences the choice of ethnic group(s) for the children. However, the data suggest that while the ethnicity of both fathers and mothers is important, the outcome vary according to the ethnic group being considered.
Ethnicity measures, intermarriage and social policy
Callister, P. (2003) Paper presented at the Connecting Policy, Research and Practice conference, Wellington, 29-30 April.
Download Ethnicity measures, intermarriage and social policy [PDF 471KB]
Abstract: Measuring and reporting the ethnic composition of New Zealand is an important part of the ongoing process of understanding our identity as individuals, as groups, and as a nation. Ethnicity is also a very important dimensional variable in social science research and policy making. However, ethnicity is not a characteristic that can be easily identified or measured.
This paper consists of three interconnected sections. The first section explores some of the historical debates around the collection of ethnicity data in New Zealand. The United States is used as a comparison. Some of the recent changes that have taken place in the recording of ethnicity in the New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings are then examined with particular emphasis on how individuals belonging to more than one ethnic group are recorded and reported in official publications.
The fact that individuals can have multiple ethnicities reflects that they are the product of ethnic intermarriages. The issue of ethnic intermarriage moves the discussion into the final section. While ethnic intermarriage is possible between a wide range of groups, this paper focuses on Maori / non-Maori intermarriage. Census data show that around half of Maori men and women have non-Maori partners. Even amongst those Maori affiliating only with the Maori ethnic group, a third have non-Maori partners.
In many social policy debates Maori and non-Maori are treated as separate groups. Increasingly, however, the two populations cannot be seen as entirely distinct. This has many implications for social scientists and policy makers, including those responsible for designing surveys. Even if future data collections encourage individuals to choose only one ethnic group or reportage of data prioritises them as belonging to only one group, over the next fifty years we are nevertheless likely to see the rise of multi-ethnic New Zealand and the decline of single ethnic New Zealand - be that single ethnic NZEuropean/Pakeha, Maori, Pacific, Asian or whatever group.
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