How much quality time spent with your spouse or partner is too much?
Sixty-six percent of those living with their spouse or partner said they had about the right amount of quality time together, according to a Statistics New Zealand report.
This fell to 57% for those who did not live with their spouse or partner.
''This means that almost one in three (31%) who lived with their spouse or partner, and two in five (40%) of those who lived apart felt they were not spending enough quality time together,'' the report said.
The report was based on analysis of the New Zealand General Social Survey 2014 and looked beyond traditional measures such as the composition and dynamics of households.
University of Otago senior lecturer in sociology Dr Bryndl Hohmann-Marriott said there was an increasing amount of research being done on LAT (Living Apart Together).
''This is a family form that we are seeing growing for a number of different reasons - from older people who don't want to lose their pensions to single parents who are still raising their kids and don't want to move in together. The thing with this study is it doesn't tell us what those reasons are,'' Dr Hohmann-Marriott said.
The fact that people were not happy with how much time they spent with their partners meant they liked them and wanted to see them more, which could be a good thing, she said.
Forty-nine percent of New Zealanders not living alone feel they get along extremely well with other household members, according to the report.
Just under 5% gave a low rating (between zero and six on a scale of zero to 10) when asked how well they got along with other household members. Couple-without-children families had the highest proportion of 10 ratings.
Dr Hohmann-Marriott said, while it was good to see so many people gave a 10 out of 10 for how well they got along with household members, it was hard to take anything concrete from a self-rated measure.
''It doesn't tell us a huge amount because with these types of scale nobody gives the lower numbers. It's probably not a fabulous measure but it's at least good to know people are willing to say they are getting along well. People are stoic, they are going to say they are fine even if the walls are crashing down around them.
''Eating meals together is a non-traditional measure of family relationship, which indicates the time spent with household members,'' the report said.
In 2014, 39% of New Zealanders ate more than seven meals each week with members of their household, an average of at least one meal per day.
Couple-without-children families had the highest proportion (59%) of families sharing more than seven meals weekly, while couple-with-children and one-parent-with-children families had lower proportions of 31% and 32% respectively.
- by David Beck
