domestic division of labour Flashcards
(42 cards)
types of conjugal roles within marriage (Bott)
segregated conjugal roles - husband and wife have distinct and separate roles and leisure time e.g. wife does the housework while husband does paid work
joint conjugal roles - husband and wife share housework and leisure time
domestic division of labour - functionalist view
the husband and wife’s role in the family is determined by biology and beneficial to both partners
the husband plays the instrumental role by working to provide for the family while the wife plays the expressive role by maintaining emotional stability within the family
domestic division of labour - ao3 of functionalist view
lacks contemporary relevance - willmott and young argue men take on more domestic tasks and women are more involved in paid work
feminists argue the domestic division of labour is a social construct to reinforce patriarchy
for the symmetrical debate - willmott and young
there has been a march of progress leading to a shift from segregated conjugal roles to joint conjugal roles within the family e.g. men used to spend leisure time at the pub with friends but now spend it with their wives
younger couples are more symmetrical due to modern developments e.g. new technology like washing machines and air fryers make housework less labour intensive, geographical mobility means nuclear families have to rely on themselves to work and do household chores
against the symmetrical debate - oakley (ao3 for willmott and young)
found issues with willmott and young’s definition of a symmetrical family - they counted the man making breakfast once a week or taking the kids to the park as proof that the family is symmetrical
found only 15% of men had a high participation in housework and 25% in childcare
the father took part in the more pleasurable aspects of childcare leaving the mother to do housework in her spare time
for the symmetrical family - sullivan
found a increase in an equal division of labour among couples and men doing ‘women’s tasks’ e.g. cooking, cleaning
in 1975 82% of husbands worked full time with their wife unemployed, which decreased to 73% in 1997, showing a shift towards equality within the family
against the symmetrical family - duncombe and morsden, hoshschild (ao3 for sullivan)
women still perform the triple shift by completing paid work, housework and emotional labour
women are often expected to satisfy the family’s emotional needs such as cheering up the children when they hurt themselves or have had a fall out
for the symmetrical family - british social attitudes
found changes in attitudes towards a man’s job to earn money and a women’s job to look after the home
only 1% thought men should do the laundry in 1994, compared 6% in 2012, similarly 48% agreed women should take care of sick family members in 1994 which decreased to 36% in 2012
against the symmetrical family - southerton (ao3 for british social attitudes)
modern society life has become ‘de-routinised’ meaning we don’t do the same thing everyday, typically men get extended periods of uninterrupted leisure time whereas women may need to juggle childcare and other tasks
this suggests women carry a dual burden where they complete both paid work and childcare
the british social attitudes findings are too marginal to suggest any change, as women are still more likely to take care of sick family members and do the laundry
for the symmetrical family - future foundations
found 60% of men claimed to do more housework than their fathers and 75% claimed to do less housework than their mothers
against the symmetrical family - dex and ward (ao3 for future foundations)
women are still always responsible for their child’s security and wellbeing - although 78% of fathers play with their kids, only 1% took the responsibility of a sick child
this leaves women with the less enjoyable childcare tasks, supporting the idea that women are pushed into the expressive role
explanations for the gendered division of labour - cultural explanation
the division of labour is determined by patriarchal norms and values - women do the housework more often because they are expected to
evidence for the cultural explanation - gerschuny
couples who saw their parents have an equal relationship are more likely to have one themselves, meaning social values are gradually adapting to women working full time and men doing housework
known as ‘lagged adaption’
evidence for the cultural explanation - british attitudes survey
less than 10% of those under 35 agreed with a traditional division of labour compared to 30% of those over 65
this shows a march of progress among the younger generation, meaning they are more likely to be symmetrical
evidence of the cultural explanation - dunne
lesbian couples are more symmetrical than heterosexual couples - heterosexual couples are dictated to follow gender scripts by upholding the instrumental/expressive role whereas lesbian couples are not linked to gender scripts allowing them to be equal
explaining the gendered division of labour - material explanation
as women generally earn less, it is economically rational for women to do more housework and childcare compared to men who work to provide for the family
evidence of the material explanation - man ye kan
for every £10000 a woman earns, she does 2 hours less housework
more pay -> more responsibility = more hours at work, less hours at home
evidence of the material explanation - arber and gin
equality depends on the social class position of women
middle class women have the money to afford full day childcare while they worked and to also buy time saving devices e.g. robot cleaners
working class women cannot afford these so are stuck doing low paid part time work and having childcare responsibilities
evidence of the material explanation - silver and schor
housework has been commercialised - goods and services women once needed to produce on their own are now mass produced for supermarkets to sell e.g. ready meals, washing machines
this reduces the burden of domestic tasks as women can afford these services
resources and decision making - kempson’s view
family members do not share resources equally e.g. women often go without in working class families by taking a smaller portion of food, skipping meals and not going out
women had no entitlement to a share of household resources e.g. house may be in husband’s name
money management is equal - pahl and vogler
identified two types of control over family income
allowance system - men would give their wife an allowance to meet the family’s needs while he kept the rest
pooling - both partners have access to a shared income and joint responsibility for spending
pooling is now the most common money management system, showing money management is becoming more equal in the family
money management is not equal - barrett and mcintosh
men gain more from women’s domestic work than they get back in finances e.g. they always have clean clothes and fresh food
financial support may come with strings attached e.g. women are expected to uphold the role of housewife or risk losing money
men still make important family decisions on spending e.g. buying a new house, where to go on holiday
decision making is equal - gershuny
by 1995, 70% of couples said they had equal say in decisions
women who also worked in high paid, high qualified jobs were more likely to have an equal say - since they earn money they can decide what to spend it on, making middle class families more symmetrical
decision making is not equal - pahl and vogler
when pooled income is controlled by the husband, he usually makes the major financial decision, suggesting the control of pooled money is more significant than just pooling the money
