Leicure activities 1997-2014

The purpose of this report is to describe Norwegians’ leisure time as it is reported in the surveys of living conditions from 1997 to 2014. The main focus is placed on the surveys from 2007, 2011, 2013 and 2014. Little has been said about the three latest surveys. The dominating themes are training and exercise, otherwise known as physical activities, outdoor activities and cultural activities. The data cover adults in the age group 16-79 years and children in the age group 6-15 years. Some tables also show activities among persons in the age group 80-89 years and among immigrants.

The time spent on training or exercise during leisure time has increased in recent years among the adults (16-79 years). Exercise has increased among all age groups. Women and men exercise almost as much as each other. The group made up of persons with a high level of education is the group that exercises the most. Among children (6-15 years), boys do more daily exercise than girls.

A large part of the population go on walking trips, cross country skiing and cycling in a year. Many are also active with jogging and swimming. Ski sports, jogging, weight training and cycling are most common among persons with a high level of education. Most children exercise by cycling, swimming and cross country skiing. The children that are most likely to do cross country skiing and downhill skiing are those whose parents have a high income.

Adults who exercised at least once a month in 2013 had expenses of around NOK 3 776 in relation to equipment, membership fees etc. for training and exercise. While those who go cross country skiing and cycling are unlikely to be members of a sports club, five out of ten of those who play handball are members of a sports club. The surveys show that use of training studios /health centres is increasing.

Walking trips are becoming ever more popular among the population. Most children go on walking trips and swim outdoors in a year. Boys are most often on fishing trips, while girls are more likely to go horse-riding.

Cinema is the cultural offering that most people use during a year, while sports events and public libraries have the highest number of visitors. Recent years we have seen an increase in the share going to the cinema. On average, every adult Norwegian goes to a cultural offering 21 times in a year. Most young people go to the cinema. Women are the most active users of cultural offerings. Children are also active users of cultural offerings, attending an average of 31 such offerings a year. Children on average read 31 books a year in 2013. In 2007, the corresponding figure was 26.

On average, children spend 21 hours watching TV and using computers in a week. Ninety-five per cent of children use a computer in a typical week. Older children spend three times longer on computers than younger children. Boys spend more time gaming than girls. Children whose parents have a high level of education spend the least amount of time on computers and watching TV. Avid book readers are also keen users of cultural offerings. Children use culture offerings to the same extent irrespective of how much time they spend watching TV. The percentage of culture use is lowest among children who do not read books. Overall, the most physically active children are also the most active users of cultural offerings.