DOMESTIC DIVISION OF LABOUR

Domestic division of labour

  • This means that the chores that are completed around the house such as cleaning, laundry, cooking, DIY + gardening

Decision making within the family

  • This means the ways in which families determine how decisions are made in the family
  • This can include financial decisions as well as day to day decisions and life changing ones

Instrumental role

Expressive role

  • The rational male role that is the breadwinner of the family + the disciplination of the family
  • The emotional + caring role that is usually carried out by the female in the family + it includes child care and most of the domestic labour

Wilmott + Young - March of progress view

  • Families = becoming more equal + democratic
  • There is a move away from separate conjugal roles of Parsons + move towards more joint conjugal roles
  • With women going out to work, men need to take more of an active role in the family + couples are more likely to spend their leisure time together

Decision making in the family: Money

Mcintosh + Barrett- Men gain more from women's unpaid domestic labour + in allowance situations men do not give adequate financial recompense + it often comes with strings attached

  • Men often make the majority of the big decisions

Kempson - Women in low income families will often go without in favour of making sure ends meet as they see money as family money

  • Men do not think this way

Pahl + Volger - Allowance system - Men give wives a certain amount of money each week/month for family expenses, all excess belongs to them

  • Pooling - all money goes into a central pot + take joint responsibility for expenditure however, men tend to earn more than women

Decision making within the family

Edgell (1980) - very important decisions are taken by men, important decisions taken jointly, day to day decisions taken by women

  • Backed up by Hardill (1997)

Laurie + Gurshunny (2000) - 70% of couples said that they had equal say in family decisions by 1995 but women who had high earning positions were more likely to say they have equal say

Feminists - Decision making isn't linked to money but cultural expectations of a patriarchal society + gender role socialisation

Why are roles changing ?

  • Economically active women/mothers - women go out to work, men need to help out around the house more in order for chores to get done
  • Decline in the extended family - fewer family/members around to help with things like child care, the couple needs to be more equal

Weakening gender identities - rise of gender neutrality in terms of roles + jobs there is less pressure to conform to traditional roles

Technology + living standards - new technology e.g. dishwashers + smart phones means that some of the jobs that used to be done no longer need to be

Commercialisation of domestic labour - as the family has become duel earning, there has been a growth in the domestic labour industry as more families pay for certain tasks to be completed to hire in Au pairs + nannies

To what extent has the level of change in domestic division of labour been exaggerated?

NO - Wilmott+ Young - Rise of the symmetrical family

  • Acceptance of their interchangeability of roles
  • 7/10 women of working age now have jobs
  • Half of mothers with children aged under 5 are in work
  • 36% of couples say that the man is the main carer

NO - Duel Burden + Triple Shift

  • Braysfield (1992), Ferri + Smith(1996), Man-yee Kan (2001), Hochschild (1990)= All found even in dual career families women had major responsibility for domestic tasks
  • McKee + Bell (1986) - Unemployed men resist pleas from partners to do more housework
  • British Social Attitudes Survey (1992) - Certain household tasks have become more equal than others

YES - Views on housework

YES - Same sex couples

  • Rapoport + Rapoport (1970) - career women were still viewed as 'wives and mothers'
  • Ann Oakley - Jointly, 'this does not mean equally' Men participating in domestic tasks are doing so to 'help their wives'
  • David Morley (1992) - 'women see the home as a place of work, men a place of leisure'
  • Craig (2007) - Women doe 1/3 more housework than men due to the partnership penalty + marriage penalty
  • Dune (1999) - Gay + Lesbian couples are more equal + symmetrical than heterosexual ones. But if unequal earning, then there was unequal division of domestic labour