Studying Housework Across Nations

Abstract

Long motivated by microlevel paradigms, the study of housework has been revitalized by research emphasizing macrolevel influences. Common trends and persistent differences across the developed world underscore the importance of country context. Gender specialization, gender equality, and socioeconomic (in)equality are cultural and structural domains that channel domestic behavior in predictable directions. By demonstrating the country-tocountry differences in the causes and consequences of domestic arrangements, this research points to 5 questions that set a course for studies of housework in comparative context.

Mission Impossible? New Housework Theories for Changing Families

“…Although some have argued that housework is slowly converging toward equality , others have argued that the persistence of a gender gap in housework constitutes a stalled gender revolution (England, 2010;Gerson, 2009). The continued usefulness of the three theoretical approaches has been both supported (Davis & Willis, 2014) and contested (Treas & Lui, 2013). Here, we identify substantive issues that remain either underexplained by or omitted from current frameworks.…”

“…The continued usefulness of the three theoretical approaches has been both supported (Davis & Willis, 2014) and contested (Treas & Lui, ). Here, we identify substantive issues that remain either underexplained by or omitted from current frameworks.…”

Partners’ Educational Pairings and Fertility Across Europe

“…Several recent studies emphasize that bargaining over fertility, for example on the basis of relative resources, may be a crucial element of the fertility decision making process (Brodmann et al 2007;Bauer and Jacob 2010;Neyer et al 2013;Bauer and Kneip 2013;Berninger 2013). For instance, despite rapidly changing gender roles in the public realm, the division of domestic works remains gendered in the realm of the family, with women, on average, taking up the majority of unpaid household tasks and care work (Treas and Lui 2013;Bianchi et al 2000;Bianchi et al 2012).…”

Unfair to Me or Unfair to My Spouse: Men's and Women's Perceptions of Domestic Equity and How They Relate to Mental and Physical Health

“…As a result, men's and women's contributions to household labor have moved toward becoming more similar and equitable. Despite these shifts, domestic responsibilities have been slower to change than involvement in paid employment, and women continue to bear primary responsibility for household labor, even when they are involved in full-time professional careers (e.g., Bianchi & Milkie, 2010;Lennon & Rosenfield, 1994;Marshall, 2006;Treas & Lui, 2013).…”