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LOS ANGELES — Imagine a world where people spend nearly an hour less each day outside their homes compared to just a few years ago. This isn’t just a temporary blip — it’s a profound shift in how Americans live, work, and interact, researchers say. Their new report finds the COVID-19 pandemic has left a lasting impact on our desire to ever go outside again.
Researchers from Clemson University and UCLA have uncovered a dramatic transformation in how we use our time. Between 2019 and 2021, Americans went from spending about 5.5 hours a day outside their homes to just 4.5 hours — a staggering 51-minute reduction that shows no signs of fully reversing.
“In a world where cities cannot rely on captive office workers and must work to attract residents, workers, and customers, local officials might seek to invest more heavily in their remaining strengths,” says lead author Eric A. Morris in a media release, highlighting the broader implications of this societal shift.
People started staying home long before COVID
The study, published in the Journal of the American Planning Association, analyzed data from 34,000 Americans, tracking their daily activities before, during, and after the pandemic. The researchers examined 16 in-home activities — from sleeping to working — and 12 out-of-home activities like shopping, sports, and religious observance.
While the shift to remote work plays a role, the change extends far beyond the home office. Eight out of 12 out-of-home activities saw declines, with only a modest recovery by 2023. People are shopping online, exercising at home, and fundamentally rethinking how they spend their time.
Interestingly, this “retreat into the home” wasn’t entirely born of the pandemic. The researchers found that Americans had been gradually spending less time outside since at least 2003, with out-of-home activity decreasing by about 1.8 minutes per day annually. COVID-19 dramatically accelerated this trend.
What does this mean for society?
Cities might need to reimagine themselves, potentially transforming from centers of production to centers of consumption and entertainment. Urban planners are suggesting radical rethinks — from repurposing office spaces to creating more attractive urban living spaces.
Researchers note that the news is not all bad. Spending more time at home could mean less travel, potentially reducing fuel consumption and emissions that harm the environment. However, there’s a potential downside: increased social isolation.
The study points to technology as a key driver. Improvements in digital communication have made it easier than ever to work, shop, and socialize without ever leaving their homes. People learned new digital skills during the pandemic, and those skills are sticking.
While the trend might seem concerning, the researchers do see an opportunity. As Morris suggests, cities might now focus on creating more appealing urban experiences, investing in recreation, culture, and entertainment to draw people out of their homes.
One thing is clear: the way we live and interact has fundamentally changed. The pandemic didn’t just interrupt our lives — it reshaped them, potentially for years to come.
Paper Summary
Methodology
The researchers analyzed the American Time Use Survey (ATUS) data, covering 34,000 responses from 2019, 2021, 2022, and 2023. They applied Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression to measure the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on out-of-home and in-home activities. This approach allowed the team to quantify shifts in daily minutes spent on 12 specific out-of-home activities, travel by various modes (auto, transit, walking), and 16 in-home activities.
By comparing pre-pandemic (2019) and post-pandemic years, they observed how activity patterns shifted during and after the pandemic lockdowns, providing insight into how the pandemic influenced long-term behaviors in American daily life.
Key Results
The study revealed that the time spent on out-of-home activities sharply declined from 2019 to 2021, particularly during peak lockdown periods. By 2023, these changes had mostly persisted, showing that many people continued to spend more time at home even after restrictions eased. Specific declines were noted in out-of-home work and social activities, while in-home activities like work, screen time, and household maintenance remained high.
This shift suggests that behaviors formed during the pandemic may have created a lasting preference for staying at home, impacting future city planning, transportation needs, and housing demands.
Study Limitations
The study was limited by the inability to include data from early 2020 due to interrupted data collection during the pandemic’s onset. This gap may have missed some nuances in the shift to at-home activities. Additionally, the ATUS survey data provides only a snapshot of activities on a single day per respondent, potentially limiting insights into broader seasonal or contextual influences. Also, while OLS regression was used effectively, more complex methods like MDCEV could offer deeper insights into simultaneous activity preferences.
Discussion & Takeaways
The findings imply that city planners and policymakers might consider revisiting land use and transportation planning. With more people working remotely and spending time at home, there may be less need for office space and more demand for residential areas that accommodate work-from-home setups.
Suburban and exurban growth might increase, while urban centers may need to pivot toward providing entertainment, recreation, and community spaces. Transportation planners might focus less on expanding highway capacity and more on supporting local mobility options like cycling and walking.
Funding & Disclosures
This research was funded by the University of California Institute of Transportation Studies Statewide Transportation Research Program. The authors disclosed no conflicts of interest in relation to the study.
