domestic division of labour Flashcards
Pahl (1948)
pre-industrial revolution concept of housework did not exist , household tasks were not clearly distinguished from more general economic task]ks (eg working on the farm and tending to crops)
during Industrial Revolution
men became more identified with the public world of production + wage labour, while women confined to the private sphere of consumption and the home
domestic division of labour
the roles that men and women perform in relation to housework, childcare and paid work
Parsons key concept
INSTRUMENTAL ROLE: ‘bread winner’ , achieve success at work, provide financial support
EXPRESSIVE ROLE: home maker, primary socialisation of children, meeting family’s emotional needs
parson argues (about instrumental and expressive roles)
argues the division of labour is based on biological differences , women ‘naturally’ suited to nurturing role , claims division of labour both beneficial to men (get looked after) and women (get money)
Bott
segregated conjugal role , joint conjugal role
Young + Willmot
march of progress , symmetrical family
Oakley
rise of housewife role
critics of Parsons argument
- little evidence to support his beliefs
- doesn’t consider their choices and preferences
Elizabeth Bott (1957) - functionalist
SEGREGATED CONJUGAL ROLES- the couple have separate roles , male breadwinner , female home maker(as in Parson’s roles) , leisure activities tend to be separate
JOINT CONJUGAL ROLES- couple share tasks eg housework + child care + spend leisure time together
Willmott + Young
studied families in London, found symmetrical families more common amongst younger couples, those who are geographically or socially isolated + the more affluent
- sees family life as gradually improving for all its members (MARCH OF PROGRESS VIEW)
symmetrical families
roles much more similar (women work , men help w housework , spend leisure time together)
reasons for more symmetrical families
- changes in women’s position in society
- more women working
- geographical mobility (living away from communities they grew up in)
- new technology and labour
- higher standard of living
willmot and young complaints
research methods criticised , vague questions , unrepresented samples
Oakley
feminist view
Oakley - feminist view
- rejects ‘march of progress view’
- men + women remain unequal within family
- women do most of the housework
- the fact that men are seen as ‘helping’ women does not prove symmetry
- shows responsibility of housework still the woman’s
even though men work , housewife role still women’s primary role
Oakley research findings
- 15% husbands has a high level of participation in housework
- 25% high level of childcare (but only in more pleasurable aspects)
- men tae on more ‘pleasurable’ household tasks
15%
husbands has a high level of participation in housework
25%
high level in childcare (but only in more pleasurable aspects)
Warde
sex-typing of domestic roles is still strong, women are 30x more likely to do the washing than men and men 48x more likely to wash the car
30x and 4x
according to Wade men are 4x more likely to wash the car and women 30x more likely to do the washing
Office for national statistics
women spend on average 2.5 hours a day on housework, men spend 1hour
Bolton (woman)
only 20% of husbands have a major role in childcare
Crompton (1997)
suggests that until we have TRULY EQUAL PAY between the sexes , then the DIVISION of LABOUR in the home will REMAIN UNEQUAL
Sullivan (1975, 1987 , 1997)
trend towards equality in the home , men are taking on more TRADITIONALLY FEMALE TASKS
Crompton (1997)
agrees with Gersbury, though she thinks the TREND TOWARDS EQUALITY is linked to EARNING POWER (£££) rather than changing norms and values
Gersbury (1994)
argues that there has been a gradual increase in equality between the sexes due to a shift in norms+values around paid work —> seen as the norm for wives and women to work
(Gershury) (wives who work do less housework) : longer in paid work=
more help from husband
(Gershury) (wives who work do less housework)
no work : __% of housework
part-time : __% housework
fulltime : __% housework
no work : 83% of housework
part-time : 82% housework
fulltime : 73% housework
Gershury (1994)
wives who work do less housework
Man Yes-Kan : for every ___ rise in salary there is a ___ of housework
for every £10,000 rise in salary there is a -2hrs of housework
Man-Yee Kan (2001)
income , age and education can have a +/- correlation with the amount of housework women do
for every £10,000 rise in salary there is a -2hrs of housework
median hourly pay for full time employees show women earning ____ than men
7%
overall median pay back ___ in favouring men
13.1%
dual burden
paid work & unpaid housework
Fen & Smith (1996)
survey sample of 1,589 33 y/o fathers and mothers , fathers the main responsible for childcare in less than 4 families
(same age= same point in life)
Arber & Ginn (1995)
full day childcare essential for many women to stay in employment
Ramos (2003)
in households with an unemployed male & female in full time employment do the same amount of housework (19hrs/week)
Morris (1990)
even when fathers are unemployed , they avoid the housework
(even when fathers are unemployed , they avoid the housework) , what does R W Connel call this?
crisis of masculinity
the triple shift
1) paid work
2) emotional work
3) unpaid housework
Hochschild (1983)
women have to put up with paid work, followed by domestic work and supporting the family emotionally (the triple shift)
Dune (1999)
thinks that inequality in the ➗ of labour arises because of DEEPLY INGRAINED GENDER SCRIPTS
dune studied?
37 cohabiting lesbian couples with dependent children
what did Dune find?
found that cohabiting lesbian couples with dependent children more likely than hetero couples to:
- share childcare and housework equally
- ascribe equal importance to their careers
- view childcare positively
how about it
how abouyt this
