On an average day, nearly everyone in the US ages 15 and older engages in some sort of leisure activity, like watching TV, using a PC, socializing or exercising, according to the US Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics' "American Time Use Survey."

Watching TV accounted for about half of leisure time, on average, for both men and women. Socializing accounted for about three-quarters of an hour per day for both sexes.

Time spent reading for personal interest and playing games or using a computer for leisure varied greatly by age. Those ages 75 and older averaged 1.4 hours of reading per weekend day and 0.2 hours (12 minutes) playing games or using a computer for leisure.

Individuals ages 15 to 19 read for an average of 0.1 hours (seven minutes) per weekend day and spent one hour playing games or using a computer for leisure.



Consumers have been watching more television and using the Internet more, according to a June 2007 study by Arbitron and Edison Media Research.



One of the other leisure uses for PCs is playing video games. An Ipsos study commissioned by the Associated Press and AOL Games found 30% of gamers spent less than five hours per week watching TV, while 33% spent more than four hours per week playing video games.