Research Projects

This report describes the purposes, methods, and preliminary findings of the first large-scale survey of children's activity patterns done in the United States. The survey was commissioned by the California Air Resources Board (ARB) in 1988 and was conducted by the staff of the Survey Research Center, University of California, Berkeley, during the period April 1989 through February 1990. A sample of 1,200 California children aged 11 and under (and adult informants living in the child's household) was selected by random- digit-dialing methods and interviewed by phone to determine potential exposure to selected sources of air pollution and to ascertain (via a time diary) the children's activities and locations during a 24-hour period. Time spent in various locations and activities and proportions potentially exposed to air pollutants are reported by child's age (0-2 years, 3-5 years, 6-8 years, and 9-11 years), child's gender, season of interview, and region of residence (Southern Coast, San Francisco Bay Area, and "Rest of State"). Comparisons between the ARB Children's Activity Survey and the earlier ARB Adult Activity Survey are also provided.