inl IIIIAL AIREAS BULLETIN 380 JUNE 1968 AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION AUBURN E. V. Smith, Director UNIVERSITY Auburn, Alabama , CONTENTS Page INCREASING NUMBER OF OLDER PEOPLE-3 O B JE C T IV E S -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 4 PRO C EDU R E S - - - - - - - - - - - --- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 6 DESCRIPTION OF SAMPLE FAMILIES-----------------------6 HOBBIES AND PASTIMES--------------------------------- 9 Extent of Participation-------------------------------13 Post Retirement Activities Plans ----------------------- 16 CLUBS AND ORGANIZATIONS-----------------------------16 Extent of Mem bership-------------------------------17 Post Retirement Membership Plans---------------------19 POST RETIREMENT PLANS FOR TRAVEL--------------------29 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS ---------------------------- 21 FIRST PRINTING 2M, JUNE 1968 Leisure-Time Activities of Middle-Aged Adults in Rural Areas EITHEL ROSE 2 and JOY A. ARRINGTON of adults in the United States has increased measurably during the last 100 years. In the past men and women from young adulthood into old age have been involved in work-related activities that have made fairly inflexible demands on their time. Then about the beginning of the 20th Century, changes occurred that provided a tremendous increase in time for leisure. Automation and increased productivity, shorter work weeks, higher incomes, and earlier retirement, as well as medical advances that increased life expectancy, have produced considerably more leisure time for most adult Americans. The combination of longer life and early retirement has resulted in thousands of people finding themselves with leisure time while still leading an active life. These periods present many problems and challenges for the middle aged worker and early retiree in our society. TIME 4 LEISURE INCREASING NUMBER OF OLDER PEOPLE Population projections made by the United States Department of Health, Education, and Welfare indicate the aged population alone will exceed 30 million by the close of this century. Older people accounted for 4 per cent of the population in 1900; 8.1 The study is a contributing project to Southern Regional Project S-56, "Economic Provisions for Old Age Made by Rural Families." 2Professor of Home Management and Family Economics, Agricultural Experiment Station, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama. 'Graduate student, Auburn University, presently Extension Home Management specialist; Texas A and M University, College Station, Texas. The time in which an individual engages in voluntary free time pursuits. 4 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION per cent in 1950; and were estimated at over 9 per cent in 1965. 5 In 1965 the number of Americans over 65 years of age was estimated to be 18 million. Furthermore, it has been predicted that this number will increase to 20 million by 1970 and over 32 million by the year 2000.6 The 20th Century has seen the number of middle aged people, 45 to 64 years of age, increase in proportion to the total population of the United States. Middle aged people accounted for 14 per cent of the total population in 1900 and over 20 per cent by 1965. 7 Alabama had approximately 250,000 persons aged 65 and over in 1960. This number has been increasing by about 5,000 each year since then and is expected to be near 300,000 by 1970. Because of the nature of Alabama's residential pattern, more of these older people live on farms and in villages than in cities. 8 A special problem in Alabama centers around meeting the leisure time needs of the widely scattered aged in rural areas. The challenge to the aged and to the State is how this new leisure can be used constructively and creatively to achieve a fuller life for the older rural resident. OBJECTIVES This study was a part of the Regional Project S-56 entitled, "Economic Provisions for Old Age Made by Rural Families." 9 The objectives of this aspect of the study were: (1) to determine the informal hobbies and pastimes followed by middle-aged rural adults prior to retirement, (2) to determine the formal participation in clubs and organizations of middle-aged rural adults prior to retirement, and (3) to determine the plans of rural adults for the use of leisure time after retirement. Anonymous. 1965. Administration on Aging, U.S. Dept. of Health, Education, and Welfare, Pub. 250, p. 1. 'Anonymous. Seniors in Society, Recreation, LIV, p. 230, May 1961. E., Hall, C., and Ballard, J., Aging in Alabama. Governor's Advisory Com. on Aging, p. 17, 1960. 8President's Council on Aging, The Older American (Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1963, p. 6.). Rural families including both farm and nonfarm residents as defined by the 1960 U.S. Census of Population, living in open country or unincorporated towns and villages of less than 2,500 population. 'Perry, LEISURE-TIME ACTIVITIES 5 SCounties Surveyed FIGURE 1. Location of Alabama counties selected for inclusion in the sampling design of the Southern Regional Project, S-56. 6 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION PROCEDURES The study population was defined as all rural families residing in counties which, according to the U.S. Census of Population, 1960, were more than half (50%) rural and not part of any Standard Metropolitan Area. All eligible counties in Alabama were classified according to geographical and/or topological area. The six counties of Autauga, Baldwin, DeKalb, Hale, Jackson, and Pike were randomly selected for inclusion in the study, Figure 1. State highway maps were used to estimate the number of occupied rural houses in the counties selected. Clusters of 20 dwellings were formed and numbered consecutively in each county. A random sample of clusters was drawn in all six counties to determine the location of the families to be interviewed. The number of families actually selected was specified by the sample design and was proportional to the size of the regional population. A total sample of 210 families was required in Alabama. The families included in the study met the following criteria: (1) consisted of both a husband and a wife, (2) married before January 1, 1963, and (3) had a husband 45-64 years of age. Only households that met these criteria within the selected clusters were interviewed. Whenever possible both husband and wife were interviewed, but when the husband was not available, the wife supplied the information for both persons. The number, location, and residence of the families sampled are shown in Table 1. TABLE 1. NUMBER, LOCATION, AND RESIDENCE OF A SAMPLE OF 210 RURAL FAMILIES IN SIX RURAL ALABAMA COUNTIES, 1964 CountyFamilies Total Autauga Baldwin .... DeKalb.. Number 48 -25 interviewed Rural farm Per cent 67 60 95 Rural nonfarm Per cent 33 40 5 37 Hale Jackson Pike 43 37 25 60 70 76 40 30 24 DESCRIPTION OF SAMPLE FAMILIES In order to better understand the general characteristics of the 210 sample families, the following description is presented. The LEISURE-TIME ACTIVITIES 7 characteristics selected for discussion represent those believed important in interpreting the leisure-time activities of rural Alabamians, Table 2. TABLE 2. SELECTED CHARACTERISTICS OF 210 FAMILIES WITH A MIDDLE AGED HUSBAND IN RURAL ALABAMA, 1964 Item Item Families Number Per cent 210 150 60 158 Families surveyed------------------------Residence Rural farm ----------------------------Rural nonfarm -------------------------Race White ----------------------- 100 71 29 75 N egro --- - - - -- - - - - - -- - - - - - -- - - - - -- - - - - - -- - - - - Size of families (members) 2& ----------------------------3 & 4 -- -- - - - - - - - - -- --- - - - --- --- - - - - -- - - ---- 52 73 137 121 25 35 65 58 (Mean) Age of husbands 45-54 - ----------------------- (3.7) -- 55-64 --------- -------- --------- -------- --------- -------- --------- (Mean) (53.7) Age of wives U nder 49---------------------------- - 89 113 42 54 (Mean) (49.4) 'Education of husbands (highest grade completed) 0-6 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 10-12 -------------------------- 50-66-- -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- --- --- 97 53 47 75 14 56 46 46 28 25 40 7 29 23 7 -9 ------------- ------------ ------------------------ ------------ ------ 13 -1 6- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -(Mean') (8.9) *Education of wives (highest grade completed) 0-6----- -- 7-9 ---------------------------------------1 0-1 2 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - --- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - --1 3-1 6 -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - (Meant) (9.0) *Family cash income, 1964 $0 -999 -- --- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - -$1,000-2,999------------------------------$3,0 00-4,999------------------ -------------$5,000 and over -----------------------------(Mean3) ($3,541) * Per capita cash income, 1964 $0-9 99 -- -- -- - -- - - -- - - - -- - - - - - --- - - - --- - - ---$1,000-2,999------------------------------$3,000 -4,9 9 ------------------ -------------$5,000 and over----------------------------(Mean 3) ($1,168) 82 12 18 51 29 43 69 63 8 1 42 6 13 36 21 30 49 45 6 0 Mean' based on 189 husbands responding Mean2 based on 196 wives responding Mean 3 based on 141 families responding * 21 husbands and 14 wives did not respond. Percentage based on those responding. * 69 households did not report income. Percentage based on those reporting. * 8 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION Slightly less than three-fourths of the families (71%) lived on farms. The average farm consisted of 119 acres with the size ranging from 1 to 1,300 acres. Race was not used as a factor in selecting the sample nor in the analysis of the data, but one-fourth of the families were Negro. Family size was relatively small compared to rural families generally, because of the requirement that the husband be middled aged. The most common size was 3 or 4 family members. More than half (54%) of the families consisted of 2 or 3 members. However, some families were large as shown by the fact.that 113 families had a total of 300 dependent children ranging from 2 months through 18 years of age. Another 12 per cent of the families included adult relatives. The average age of husbands and wives in these families was 54 and 49 years, respectively. Ages of the wives ranged from 20 through 66 years with 46 per cent being less than 49 years old. Consistent with a normal age distribution more husbands were in the 45 through 54 age category than were in the older category. Education, as indicated by the number of years or grades completed, showed that slightly more than half the husbands and wives had failed to complete more than 9 years of schooling. Only 7 per cent of the husbands and 6 per cent of the wives had any education beyond high school. Most of the husbands (92%) and 30 per cent of the wives had been employed in some occupation at some time during 1964, Table 3. Husbands reported working an average of 66 hours per week for 50 weeks. Twenty-one husbands also reported having two or more jobs during the year. The work week for these husbands ranged from 65 to 88 hours. On the other hand, the employed wives reported working an average of 35 hours for 44 weeks. None of the working wives reported having two different jobs. The primary occupation for 67 per cent of the rural farm husbands was in agriculture, while 10 per cent did unskilled labor. Forty-three per cent of the rural farm husbands gave semiskilled labor as their secondary occupations. Over one-third (37%) of the rural nonfarm husbands gave their primary occupation as unskilled labor; 15 per cent, semiskilled, and 12 per cent, skilled. LEISURE-TIME ACTIVITIES TABLE 3. NUMBER OF HOURs AND WEEKS WORKED IN PRIMARY JOBS BY ALABAMA FARM AND NONFARM HUSBANDS AND WIVES, 1964 9 RURAL Primary job Hours worked per week Husbands Rural Rural farm nonfarm Total Rural farm Wives Rural nonfarm Total Percent Percent Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent Less than 39______________________ 23 8 12 38 22 32 40-59 --------------------------------40 56 45 62 78 68 60-79 -----------------------------35 13 29 0 0 0 80 or more_________________________ 17 8 14 0 0 0 Total number responding- 141 52 193 40 23 63 Weeks worked per year 17 Less than 39____________________ 15 3 6 30 40-49 -----------------------------15 23 18 45 22 50-52 -------------------------------- 61 82 62 76 25 23 Total number responding- 141 52 193 40 25 37 38 63 Note: No employment in 1964 was reported by 17 husbands who were disabled or retired. Thirty-seven per cent of the wives had skilled occupations and were working in factories. Seven per cent were in managerial, professional or semi-professional work and seventy per cent of all wives were homemakers and did not work away from home. Only about two-thirds of the families reported their family cash income for 1964. Among those families that did, the family incomes ranged from $600 to $10,050 with an annual per capita income ranging from $6 to $5,025. Thirteen per cent of the- families reported a cash income of less than $1,000. The average cash income was $3,541 and the average per capita cash income was $1,168. HOBBIES AND PASTIMES, Hobbies and pastimes were divided into four categories representing different interests and skills: (1) crafts and creative artselectronics, dancing, painting, crocheting, knitting, quilting, and sewing, (2) sports and entertainment-camping, fishing, hunting, ball games, boating, surfing, bowling, golfing, skeet shooting, card playing, and crossword puzzles, (3) occupational-care of animals, canning, and gardening, and- (4) intellectual-reading and collecting coins or stamps. 10 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION TABLE 4. TYPES OF HOBBIES AND PASTIMES PARTICIPATED IN BY HUSBANDS AND WIVES FROM 210 RURAL ALABAMA FAMILIES, 1964 Residence Types of hobbies and pastimes Rural farm Husbands Rural nonfarm Rural farm Wives Rural nonfarm Total Sports and entertainmentOccupational ___2 Crafts and creative arts Intellectual _ None_______________________________ Total number responding 2 Less Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent 81 58 74 9 23 13 7 5 41 38 40 2 29 10 24 1 6 2 5 1 2 33 29 42 33 33 33 150 60 210 150 60 210 1 Percentages total more than 100 because of multiple responses. than 1 per cent. Over half of the husbands interviewed reported pastimes of the sports and entertainment type, Table 4. Less than 7 per cent of all husbands participated in any other types of activities. Hunting and fishing proved to be the favorite activities of both farm and nonfarm males in rural areas, Figures 2 and 3. The greatest proportion of wives (40%) preferred hobbies of the occupational type while only a few chose intellectual hobbies. Gardening and sewing ranked first in interest among farm wives but only gardening ranked high among nonfarm wives. Rural farm women were more active in pastimes than were nonfarm women in all areas except sports. The rural farm wives had almost three times as many creative and intellectual hobbies and overall reported more activities than did the rural nonfarm wives. The proportion of wives in the higher income families who participated in multiple activities was larger than the proportion of husbands. Occupational committments on time among the husbands and adequate income to finance activities for wives appear to explain this difference. By comparing the cash expenditures on leisure-time activities for families with varying incomes, it was clearly shown that cost is a definite factor, Table 5. A comparison of mean expenditures indicated that families with incomes of less than $3,000 spent $11 or less annually while families with incomes over $5,000 spent an average of $53 on leisure-time activities. Joint pastimes involving both the husband and wife centered around travel among both rural farm and nonfarm residents. LEISURE-TIME ACTIVITIES 11 LEISURE-TIE ACTIVITIES 1 ACTIVITY Flowers and Gardening ti3 33 Fishing II K2Y 18 4 Handwork, Sewing Hunting Misc. Sports and Games Organizations and Clubs iport5 M5 Travel 0 0 20 30 40 // Husbands Wives Joint. interest ] FIGURE 2., Selected individual and joint leisure-time activities participated in most frequently by 150 farm husbands and wives in rural Alabama, 1964. 12 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION 12 ACTIVITY Flowers and Gardening ALABAMA AGRICUnLTUR 7 7 7 77 7 7 Fishing Handwork, 10 Sewing Hunting Misc. Sports and Games ~32 Organizations and Clubs Travel 10 20 30 40 Husbands ,MWives M Jdoint interest FIGURE 3. Selected individual and joint leisure-time activities participated in most frequently by 60 nonfarm husbands and wives in rural Alabama, 1964. LEISURE-TIME ACTIVITIES 13 LEISURE-IM~E TABLE ACTIVITIES 1 5. NUMBER OF HOBBIES AND PASTIMES PARTICIPATED IN BY FAMILY INCOME OF HUSBANDS AND WIVES FROM 210 RURAL ALABAMA FAMILIES, 1964 Family cash Number of hobbies and pastimes $0999 $10002999 income, $3000- $50004999 & over 1964 reported Not Percent Percent Per cent Per cent Per cent Husbands None-----------------------------------44 45 17 14 41 63 41 1------------------------------- -------50 51 52 2 or more------------------------------------6 4 31 23 18 Total number responding----------------18 51 29 43 69 Wives N one-----------------------------------56 41 21 19 35 1------------------------------------44 48 62 70 46 2 or more -------------------------------- 10 17 11 19 Total number responding----------------- 18 51 29 43 69 Thirty per cent of the rural nonfarm families and 25 per cent of the rural farm families reported taking trips together. Rural nonfarm families took more trips during the year than did the rural farm families. Among the other joint activities reported, only fishing was engaged in by any sizeable portion of these husbands and wives. The proportions of rural farm and non-farm families sharing this activity were similar. Extent of Participation Results of this survey showed that the rate of participation in informal activities often described as hobbies and pastimes. were similar for both sexes, however considerable difference was found in the types of activities followed by men and women. Twothirds of the husbands and wives sampled engaged in at least one leisure-time activity, Table 6. TABLE 6. NUMBER OF HOBBIES AND PASTIMES BY RESIDENCE OF HUSBANDS AND WIVElS FROM 210 RURAL ALABAMA FAMILIES, 1964 Number of hobbies an atms Residence Husbands Rural Rural Total Rural farm nonfarm farm Wives Rural nonfarm Total Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent 33 33 33 29 42 33 1---------------------48 57 50 56 50 54 2 or more-------------19 10 17 15 8 13 Total number responding- 150 60 210 150 60 210 None----------------- 14 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION Residence. Farm wives were found to participate in leisuretime activities more often than rural nonfarm wives, although the differences were small, Table 6. At the same time wives were slightly more likely to report some leisure-time activity than were their husbands, but the husbands showed a slightly greater tendency toward having more than one such activity. The important finding, however, was that one-third of all husbands and wives regardless of farm or nonfarm residence reported having no hobbies or pastimes. The situation was particularly acute among non-farm wives where the proportion with no leisure-time activities was 42 per cent. Age. This study revealed that the younger husbands (age 45 to 54) had more hobbies and pastimes than did the older husbands (age 55 to 64), Table 7. Husbands with two or more hobbies or pastimes were more than twice as likely to be in the younger age category. Conversely, no differences were observed relative to age among wives age 50 to 66 and those under 49 years of age. These data suggest that many of the leisure-time activities of men are not consistent with the aging process and gradually are given up with advancing years. Women's activities are not as directly affected by age as are men's activities. Education. It was found that as the educational level of husbands and wives increased so did the number of leisure-time activities, Table 8. Little difference was observed in the incidence of hobbies or pastimes reported by people whose education was limited to the elementary and junior high levels. Among persons with 10 to 12 years of schooling 80 per cent of the husbands and 74 per cent of the wives had one or more hobbies. Seventy-nine per cent of the men and 92 per cent of the women with 1 to 4 years of college reported one or more hobbies and pastimes. TABLE 7. NUMBER OF HOBBIES AND PASTIMES BY AGE OF HUSBANDS FROM 210 RURAL ALABAMA FAMILIES, 1964 AND WIVES Age Number of hobbies and pastimes Husbands 45-54 None -------------------- Wives Under 49 34 55-64 38 50-66 32 Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent 30 1 ----------------------------------------------2 or more -22 Total number responding - 48 121 53 9 89 53 13 113 55 13 97 LEISURE-TIME ACTIVITIES 15 LEISURETIME~ TABLE 8. ACTIVITIES 1 AND NUMBER OF HOBBIES AND PASTIMES BY EDUCATION OF HUSBANDS WIVES FROM 210 RURAL ALABAMA FAMILIES, 1964 Education (highest grade Number of hobbies and pastimes 0-6 7-9 10-12 13-16 completed) Not 21 38 reported Husbands N one ------------------------------- -45 43 1--- -- ---- ---- ------- -- ------- -- ---- -- -51 49 2 or m ore ------ --------4 8 Total number responding-----------53 47 _-----_----------- Percent Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent 20 51 29 75 50 29 14 48 14 21 Wives N one--------2 --- --------------------_-- 45 41 1--------- -----------------------------or more Total number responding------------56 46 ------------------- 52 3 55 4 26 55 19 82 8 42 50 12' 22 64 14 14 Income. Cash income available to the family also was associated with the number of informal leisure-time activities participated in by husbands and wives in rural families. In families with cash earnings of less than $1,000 in 1964, husbands and wives were least likely to report participating in any pastimes, Table 9. Similar high proportions (more than 40%) of non-participation occurred among husbands and wives in households with incomes between $0 and $2,999. Conversely, over 80 per cent of the husbands and wives in households with incomes above $3,000 reported leisure-time activities. In the lowest income classes, one-fourth the respondents reported no expenditures for hobbies and pastimes during 1964. All households with incomes above $3,000 had expenditures for their TABLE 9. NUMBER OF HOBBIES AND PASTIMES BY FAMILY INCOME OF HUSBANDS AND WIVES FROM 210 RURAL ALABAMA FAMILIES, 1964 Number of hobbiesFaiyncm and pastimes Husbands None---------------------------------------_----- $0999 $10002999 Not $3000- $50004999 and over reported Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent 44 18 Per cent 41 45 17 14 50 1----------------------------2 or more ------------------6 Total number 51 4 51 52 31 29 63 23 43 41 18 69 responding--------- Wives 56 44 1----------------------------2 or more----------------------- ---Total,number responding____________ 18 N one-------------------------- 41 48 10 51 21 62 17 29 19 70 11 43 35 46 19 69 16 TABLE 10. ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION COST OF HOBBIES AND PASTIMES BY FAMILY INCOME OF 210 RURAL ALABAMA FAMILIES, 1964 Expenditures for hobbies and pastimes Family income 999 $0$1000$3000$5000- Not 2999 4999 and over reported None $1-49 $50 or moreNo response Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent 22 17 10 33 39 61 83 60 30 13 5 2 17 10 32 39 27 ----------Total number responding Mean expenditures---------------------------. 18 ($6) 51 ($11) 29 ($33) 43 ($53) 69 ($26) leisure time activities and 31 per cent of those with incomes of $5,000 and above spent more than $50 annually on hobbies and pastimes. However, the greatest proportion of respondents spent from $1 to $49 on family hobbies regardless of income level, Table 10. Post Retirement Activities Plans Only 65 per cent of the rural farm husbands and 73 per cent of their wives planned to continue with their present hobbies and pastimes after the husbands retired, Table 11. Eight per cent of both husbands and wives did not intend to continue their hobbies and pastimes while the remainder had made no plans or did not know. More of the rural nonfarm husbands and wives planned to continue their hobbies and pastimes, 75 and 86 per cent, respectively, than did the rural farm families. CLUBS AND ORGANIZATIONS The majority of memberships in formally organized groups reported by the husbands were in lodges and fraternal organizations. Farm husbands were somewhat more likely to belong to TABLE 11. AND WIVES WITH SUCH ACTIVITIES PLANS FOR HOBBIES AND PASTIMES AFTER RETIREMENT BY HUSBANDS IN 210 SELECTED ALABAMA FAMILIES, 1964 Residence Retirement plans Rural farm Husbands Rural nonfarm Total Rural farm Wives Rural nonfarm Total Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent 6 8 0 6 2 .--------- 8 Discontinue 86 77 67 73 65 75 Continue 18 27 19 14 27 23 Don't know 131 42 173 47 175 Total number responding 128 LEISURE-TIME ACTIVITIES 17 AND ORGANIZATIONAL PARTICIPATION FROM 210 RURAL ALABAMA TABLE 12. OF TYPES OF CLUB HUSBANDS AND WIVES FAMILIES, BY RESIDENCE 1964 Residence Club and organizations Rural farm Husbands Rural nonfarm Rural farm Wives Rural nonfarm Total Per cent1 Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent 9 0 1 15 5 2 Agricultural-----7 4 5 0 3 C ivic ------------------------------_ 5 Church groups 2 1 2 19 12 12 14 7 7 35 25 21 Lodges and fraternal ....... 0 0 0 Military organizations__ 4 1 2 1 3 1 1 0 1 Professional 3 0 1 Recreational 2 1 2 None-65 70 67 61 82 67 Total number responding 210 210 1Percentages total more than 100 because of multiple responses. such organizations than were nonfarm husbands, Table 12. Organizations listed most frequently by wives were church groups (19 and 12%), lodges and fraternal orders (14 and 7%), and agricultural groups (15 and 5%). In all instances farm wives were more apt to participate than were nonfarm wives. Membership in 7 categories of clubs and organizations was dispersed more evenly for husbands than for wives. Extent of Membership Husbands and wives shared like interests in clubs and organizations, but less than one-third of them were members in any organized group. Residence. Participation in clubs by rural farm was only slightly greater than that by rural nonfarm husbands, but rural farm wives were twice as active in organizations as were the rural nonfarm, Table 13. TABLE 13. NUMBER OF CLUB AND ORGANIZATIONAL MEMBERSHIPS BY RESIDENCE OF HUSBANDS AND WIVES FROM 210 RURAL ALABAMA FAMILIES, 1964 Residence Number of Husbands Wives memberships Rural farm Rural nonfarm Total Rural farm Rural nonfarm Total Total None 1 2 or more Total number responding Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent 66 72 68 62 81 68 24 26 25 22 15 20 10 2 8 16 4 12 150 60 210 150 60 210 18 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION TABLE 14. NUMBER OF CLUB AND ORGANIZATIONAL MEMBERSHIPS BY AGE OF HUSBANDS AND WIVES FROM 210 RURAL ALABAMA FAMILIES, 1964 Age umbershofs memberships 45-54 Husbands 55-64 Total Under 49 Wives 50-66 Total Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent 68 68 68 67 65 None________________________________72 28 19 24 20 20 20 1 -----------------------13 12 7 9 8 12 2 or more Total number responding 121 89 100 113 97 100 Age. Younger middle-aged husbands, 45 to 54 years, showed more participation in formal organizations than did older men, Table 14. Among the wives, age was not a factor since their participation in one or more groups was almost the same. Education. Correlation was evident between length of schooling and number of club memberships reported, Table 15. The percentages of couples reporting no group association at four educational levels were: elementary, 93 per cent; junior high school, 76 per cent; high school, 47 per cent; and college, 29 per cent. Income. The number of group affiliations held by these couples was affected directly by income. There were no memberships among families with incomes of less than $1,000; but, with each higher income level, participation increased until 61 per cent of the husbands and wives with more than $5,000 income belonged to clubs, Table 16. TABLE 15. NUMBER OF CLUB AND ORGANIZATIONAL MEMBERSHIPS BY EDUCATION OF HUSBANDS AND WIVES FROM 210 RURAL ALABAMA FAMILIES, 1964 Number of memberships 0-6 7-9 Education 10-12 13-16 Not reported Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent Husbands None 1 -6 2 or more Total number responding_....... Wives None 1 2 or more Total number responding-------94 0 53 93 7 0 56 77 21 2 47 76 22 2 46 47 40 13 75 54 24 22 82 29 36 35 14 0 50 50 12 71 29 0 21 72 21 7 14 LEISURE-TIME ACTIVITIES 19 LEISURE-TIMJIE ACTIVTIES 1 TABLE 16. NUMBER OF CLUB AND ORGANIZATIONAL MEMBERSHIPS BY FAMILY INCOME OF HUSBANDS AND WIVES FROM 210 RURAL ALABAMA FAMILIES, 1964 Number, of memberships Husbands None-----------------------------------1--------2 or m ore ----------------------------------- $0999 Family income Not $1000- $3000- $50002999 4999 & over reported 86 8 6 Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent 100 0 0 Total.number responding--------------Wives None---- 18 100 51 78 38 55 7 29 55 35 10 29 39 47 14 43 35 43 72 20 8 69 76 16 8 69 1---------2 or more-----------------------------------Total number responding--------------- 0 0 18 20 2 51 28, 37 Amount of income had little effect on yearly expenditures for membership dues and fees, Table 17. Those with incomes below $5,000 spent less than $50 on group affiliations, whereas at the level above $5,000, 86 per cent listed club expenditures under $50. The unreported income category represented the largest proportion (20%) of families who spent more than $50 per year. More than twice as many families making over $5,000 spent more than $50 for dues and fees than did those earning less than $5,000. Regardless of income, the greatest proportion of families reported spending less than $50 for clubs and organizations. Post Retirement Membership Plans Plans for retirement years showed no significant change in organizational membership, either by joining additional groups or dropping present affiliations. One-third of the rural farm husbands and over one-fourth of their wives were going to continue TABLE 17. COST OF CLUB AND ORGANIZATIONAL MEMBERSHIPS BY FAMILY INCOME OF 210 RURAL ALABAMA FAMILIES, 1964 Expenditures and organizations None----------------$1-49 $50or for clubs 999 so0 0 $1ooo- $3000- $50002999 4999 Family income Not Toa & over reportedToa No. 126 73 11 Total number responding. Mean expenditures------ ----------------more ---------- Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent 100 0 0 0 0 93 7 95 5 86 14 75 25 25 none 50 $12 30 $21 44 $33 61 $37 210 20 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION 20 ALABAMA AGRICULTURLEPIMN STIO TABLE 18. PLANS FOR CONTINUED MEMBERSHIP IN CLUBS AND ORGANIZATIONS AFTER RETIREMENT BY RESIDENCE OF 210 RURAL ALABAMA FAMILIES, 1964 Clubs and organizations Residence Rural farm Rural nonfarm Husbands Wives Husbands Wives Pct. DK 6 0 23 Pct. Pct. Pct. Pct. Pct. Pct. Pct. cont. DK comt. DK cont. DK cont. Agriculture---------------------------- 11 5 10 10 7 4 12 Civic--------------------------------------------5 5 1 6 19 4 0 9 0 28 14 0 24 Church ----------------------------- 4 Lodges & fraternal ---------------------56 6 22 2 46 12 29 Military organizations------- 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 Professional------------------ 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 Recreational--------------------------------2 0 1 4 0 4 0 Total number responding-----------88 88 26 _ 6 0 0 0 17 Note: None of this group stated that they would discontinue membership in clubs and organizations. memberships in clubs and organizations, whereas 17 per cent of the husbands and 37 per cent of the wives had not decided, Table 18. Less than one-half of the rural nonfarm husbands, and onethird of their wives intended to continue with their clubs and organizations. No one stated that they would definitely discontinue their memberships. Evidently not much thought had been given to continued membership in clubs and organizations at this time by either rural farm or nonfarm families. POST RETIREMENT PLANS FOR TRAVEL Plans for post-retirement travel were definite in only 17 per cent of the families with an additional 38 per cent undecided. The remaining families were not interested in travel and preferred to stay at home, Table 19. TABLE 19. PLANS FOR PARTICIPATION IN TRAVEL AFTER RETIREMENT BY RESIDENCE OF HUSBANDS AND WIVES FROM 210 RURAL ALABAMA FAMILIES, 1964 Travel after retirement Rural farm Per cent 18 43 Residence Rural nonfarm Per cent 15 50 Total Per cent 17 45 Yes-- ---- - --- -- - -- -- -- - -- - - - - -- - - -No ---------------------D on't know ----------------------------------- Total number responding------------- 39 150 35 60 38 210 LEISURE-TIME ACTIVITIES 21 Only 3 (1%) of the 210 families were saving money especially for retirement travel, while 2 others had savings and investments that they might use for this purpose. The remaining families, who stated that they planned to travel after age 65, had made no provisions for doing so. Fifteen rural farm families estimated that they would need between $25 and $500 for future travel with the average being about $187 per family. Only five rural nonfarm families estimated their future needs for travel at $10 to $200, or an average of $122 per family. Other families had made no plans and did not estimate their needs. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS This study was made of the leisure-time activities of 210 selected rural households living in six widely separated Alabama counties. Husbands in each family were between 45-64 years of age and the couple had been married for at least one year prior to the time of the survey. The study population consisted of 150 rural farm and 60 rural nonfarm families. Approximately 75 per cent of the sample was white and 25 per cent Negro. The average household consisted of three to four members with a mean cash income of $3,541 and an average per capita income of $1,168. Only a slight difference in the mean education of husbands and wives was noted. Twenty-six respondents reported having had college training, all of whom were rural farm residents. It was found that rural Alabama families had few leisure-time activities in which they participated. The range and types of activities reported by the respondents were extremely limited. The results showed that younger men and older women were the ones reporting the most activities. No difference was found in the number of leisure-time activities in which husbands and wives participated. Results revealed that participation in all such activities increased with rises in level of educational attainment and family income. On the basis of residence, it was found that a somewhat larger percentage of rural farm families participated in leisure-time pursuits than did the rural nonfarm. According to these data, few of the middle-aged rural couples studied had made plans for the use of their leisure hours after 22 ALABAMA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION retirement. The majority of families with present leisure-time activities reported their intentions to continuing participation in current pastimes and organizations after age 65. However the largest proportion of the sample families had made practically no economic provisions to insure future participation. Travel was included in future plans by a sizeable percentage of the respondents but only a fraction of them had made any financial provisions for it. This study indicated that there was a definite lack of creative leisure-time activities among the 210 Alabama families studied. This deficiency appeared to be related to education and income with age and residence having a lesser effect. Income appeared to be the most important factor in determining leisure-time activities.