Comprehensive Study Explores 190 Billion Human Hours Daily – A Novel Insight Into Global Time Allocation

A team of researchers has undertaken an exhaustive investigation to comprehend how individuals worldwide divide their daily hours. The study scrutinized data spanning from 2000 to 2019 and encompassed 87% of the global populace. It elucidated that activities centered around human needs and interactions overwhelmingly consume daily time, with a mere 2.6 hours daily devoted to economic activities. This suggests room for recalibration in how time is allocated to specific endeavors.

Newly published findings offer a detailed account of how an average human day is spent across global demographics.

Eight billion people inhabit the Earth, each with 24 hours at their disposal. In aggregate, this equates to approximately 190 billion human hours each day. How this colossal amount of time is apportioned has profound implications for our societal framework and individual lived experiences. To probe deeper into this, researchers from McGill University executed an extensive study that collated data on a multitude of economic and non-economic activities. The study presents an unparalleled window into what constitutes an average day on our planet.

Eric Galbraith, a professor in Earth System Science at McGill University and the senior author of the recently published study in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, states, “Addressing global challenges demands novel viewpoints on the mechanics of our global system. For sustainable management of climate change, loss of biodiversity, rapid technological shifts, and to achieve international development goals, understanding the comprehensive landscape of global human activity is imperative for identifying avenues for meaningful change.”

Table of Contents

A Panoramic Examination of Collective Human Endeavors

William Fajzel, a Ph.D. student also in Earth System Science at McGill University, and the study’s first author, queries, “If we amalgamate the time allocation of humanity across all demographics and nations, what does that average human day appear to be?”

To answer this question, the research team analyzed time utilization and labor metrics amassed from over 140 nations during 2000-2019, representing 87% of the global population, deliberately sidestepping the aberrations caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Categorization of Daily Activities and Their Intended Outcomes

Activities performed during the waking hours were classified based on their underlying objectives. These activities were divided into three principal groups:

Designed to modify the external world, encompassing activities like food provision or modification, energy generation, building construction, and environmental upkeep.
Directed explicitly at human minds and bodies, which includes personal care, education, religious practices, hobbies, social engagement, sports, media consumption, and rest.
Activities intended for societal organization, including transport, commerce, financial activities, legal systems, and governance.

The researchers individually classified nearly 4,000 distinct activities and uncovered some surprising patterns.

Time Largely Spent on Human-Centric Activities

According to the study, the largest proportion of time, slightly more than nine hours daily, is concentrated on activities that are focused on human well-being. An additional nine hours are consumed by sleep. The residual six hours are divided among a range of activities including food procurement and preparation, commuting, and organizational tasks like trade, law, and governance. The time allocated to waste management is a mere minute, in stark contrast to the 45 minutes dedicated to home upkeep.

Correlation Between Wealth and Time Spent on Activities

The time expended on activities such as eating, daily commuting, personal hygiene, and food preparation did not exhibit a consistent correlation with the material affluence of a population. Conversely, time devoted to food procurement varied significantly, with over an hour in low-income countries to less than five minutes in affluent nations.

Limited Time Allocated to Economic Tasks

Of note, the study encompassed both economic and non-economic tasks. It estimated that the global economy takes up around 2.6 hours of an average human day, with the labor force contributing to a conventional 40-hour work week. This economic activity primarily involves agriculture, livestock production, and organizational endeavors like trade, finance, and law. Despite the modest 2.6 hours, the study indicates abundant scope for reallocating time to activities like material extraction, energy provisioning, and waste management, which collectively take about seven minutes.

Reference: “The global human day” by William Fajzel, Eric D. Galbraith, Christopher Barrington-Leigh, Jacques Charmes, Elena Frie, Ian Hatton, Priscilla Le Mézo, Ron Milo, Kelton Minor, Xinbei Wan, Veronica Xia and Shirley Xu, 12 June 2023, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2219564120

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Global Time Allocation

What is the main aim of the study conducted by McGill University researchers?

The primary objective of the McGill University study is to understand how people worldwide allocate their time during an average day. The research covers data from 2000 to 2019 and represents 87% of the global population.

How many human hours does the study estimate are spent daily across the world?

The study estimates that approximately 190 billion human hours are spent every day, based on a world population of eight billion people each having 24 hours in a day.

What are the main categories of activities that the study looks into?

The study classifies daily activities into three major categories:

Activities designed to modify the external world.
Activities directed at human minds and bodies.
Activities intended for societal organization.

Who are the key contributors to this research?

The key contributors to this research are Eric Galbraith, a professor in Earth System Science at McGill University and the study’s senior author, and William Fajzel, a Ph.D. student in Earth System Science at McGill University and the first author.

Does the study suggest that time allocation could be optimized?

Yes, the study suggests that there is room for recalibration in how time is allocated to specific activities. It especially points out that a mere 2.6 hours are dedicated daily to economic activities, indicating potential for shifts in time management.

What was surprising about the time spent on activities based on wealth?

The study found that time spent on activities like meals, daily travel, and hygiene does not change systematically with the wealth of a population. However, time spent on food procurement varies significantly, taking over an hour in low-income countries and less than five minutes in high-income countries.

Does the study account for the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic?

No, the study deliberately avoids the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic by focusing on data gathered from 2000 to 2019.

What are the economic activities that dominate the global day?

According to the study, the global economy takes up around 2.6 hours of an average human day, dominated primarily by agriculture and livestock production, followed by allocational activities like trade, finance, and law.

What is the study’s relevance to global challenges?

The study aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of global human activity, which is crucial for addressing global challenges such as climate change, loss of biodiversity, and rapid technological shifts.

Where can one find the complete study?

The complete study is published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and can be accessed through its DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2219564120.