Sports and cultural habits by gender: An application using count data models

This article analyses individual decisions regarding participation in two leisure activities: sports and culture. Using data from the 2002-2003 Spanish Time Use Survey (TUS), information was collected on the number of times an individual participated in sports and attended cultural events in the four weeks immediately preceding the survey. In our empirical analysis, we apply count data models to estimate the frequency of sports practice and cultural attendance, both defined in the aggregate, and we also apply those models to estimate specific activities. Moreover, we run separate estimates by gender. Our results reveal that both activities are seasonal and are more common in urban areas. In addition, family responsibilities and family size are a disincentive to engage in such activities, while non-labour income and wages exert a positive effect. In analysing the demand for specific activities, we find that participation elasticity with respect to non-labour income is usually less than one for the cultural and sports activities considered, whereas wage elasticity is generally greater than one. We also find differences by activity and gender.