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Journal ArticleDOI

Husbands’ Participation in Housework and Child Care in India

01 Jun 2014-Journal of Marriage and Family (Wiley Subscription Services, Inc)-Vol. 76, Iss: 3, pp 620-637
TL;DR: The authors tested theories of housework among tea plantation workers in India and revealed a curvilinear relationship between husbands' earnings share and their participation in each task, supporting theories of bargaining and gender display.
Abstract: The authors tested theories of housework among tea plantation workers in India, where women comprise the main part of the workforce and are breadwinners in their families. Analysis of 49 semistructured interviews and survey data from 3,181 female workers revealed that although women were mainly responsible for domestic labor, more than half of husbands usually or sometimes helped their wives with cooking, fuel wood collection, and child care. The analyses revealed a curvilinear relationship between husbands’ earnings share and their participation in each task, supporting theories of bargaining and gender display. The probability of male participation decreased to its lowest level when men earned less than their wives. Husbands rarely helped with clothes washing—considered the most feminine task—and their participation did not respond to changes in relative earnings. These results support the authors’ argument that patterns of bargaining and gender display will vary depending on the gendered nature of housework tasks within a particular society.
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This article proposed a conceptual framework of intra-household decision-making which can accommodate many classes of women's economic empowerment measures and proposed a typology of WEE measures which combines proximity of concept to measurability.

38 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper found that men tend to do less of this mnemonic work than women do and that when men do mnemonically help their partners, the help tends to involve errands for which they are stakeholders.
Abstract: Couples appear to help each other remember outstanding tasks (“to-dos”) by issuing reminders. We examine if women and men differ in the frequency with which they offer this form of mnemonic assistance. Five studies measure how heterosexual couples coordinate mnemonic work in romantic relationships. The first two studies demonstrate that men are assumed to do less of this form of mnemonic work (Study 1) and experience less societal pressure to do so than women do (Study 2). The next three studies suggest that men tend to do less of this mnemonic work than women do and that, when men do mnemonically help their partners, the help tends to involve errands for which they are stakeholders. This notion was evidenced in the greater accessibility of examples of women’s reminding acts than men’s reminding acts for both partners (Study 3) and in the less helpful reminders that men provided, compared to those women provided, as rated by both partners (Study 4a) and independent coders (Study 4b). These results converge on the possibility that men, relative to women, are less inclined to be concerned with keeping track of their partners” outstanding needs, perhaps because doing so is a behavior that is less strongly prescribed for men than for women. Implications for helping behavior and the possible consequences associated with performing disproportionate mnemonic work in relationships are discussed.

16 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: For both dating and married participants, scores on relationship satisfaction, love, intimacy and passion were significantly lower post−lockdown compared with the pre-lockdown period, whereas commitment for those dating remained unaffected.
Abstract: Objective Background Method Results Conclusion Implications To assess love and relationship satisfaction among dating and married participants pre‐ and post‐COVID‐19 lockdown in India.Extant literature demonstrates the impact of stressors like terror attacks and natural disasters on intimate relations. Yet little is known about how a significant stressor like the COVID‐19 lockdown will impact love among married and dating couples.Data from a convenience sample of 100 participants (65 dating, 35 married) was collected in two waves, first in January–March and then in May after the lockdown. Participants completed an online survey with measures of love, relationship satisfaction, self‐esteem, and how they spent time with their partner. Paired sample t test, correlation analysis, and thematic analysis were used.For both dating and married participants, scores on relationship satisfaction, love, intimacy and passion were significantly lower post‐lockdown compared with the pre‐lockdown period. Commitment for those dating remained unaffected. Watching movies together and revisiting old memories was related to love for those dating, whereas for married couples, doing household chores, cooking, and watching movies together was associated with love.Passion and intimacy in relationships changed after the COVID‐19 lockdown. How couples spent time with each other during the lockdown holds important implications for relationship satisfaction.Practitioners who work with couples must focus on ways in which couples spend quality time with each other. Norms that define a relationship, particularly with regard to participation in domestic work by men, must be revisited to adapt to the new normal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Family Relations is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

13 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A lack of empirical evidence on unequal time burde... as discussed by the authors suggests that women spend a disproportionate amount of time on unpaid housework and childcare compared to men, but there is no empirical evidence to support this conclusion.
Abstract: Existing research suggests that women spend a disproportionate amount of time on unpaid housework and childcare compared to men. However, there is a lack of empirical evidence on unequal time burde...

8 citations


Cites background from "Husbands’ Participation in Housewor..."

  • ...Even if men do participate in household work, they consider certain tasks as feminine chores, such as washing clothes, outside their purview (Luke et al., 2014)....

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References
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Book
01 Jan 2014
TL;DR: An Invitation to Grounded Theory Gathering Rich Data Crafting and Conducting Intensive Interviews Interviewing in Grounded theory Studies The logic of grounded theory Coding Practices and Initial Coding Focused Coding and beyond Memo-Writing Theoretical Sampling, Saturation and Sorting Reconstructing theory in grounded theories as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: An Invitation to Grounded Theory Gathering Rich Data Crafting and Conducting Intensive Interviews Interviewing in Grounded Theory Studies The Logic of Grounded Theory Coding Practices and Initial Coding Focused Coding and beyond Memo-Writing Theoretical Sampling, Saturation and Sorting Reconstructing Theory in Grounded Theory Studies Symbolic Interactionism and Grounded Theory Writing the Draft Reflecting on the Research Process

9,120 citations


"Husbands’ Participation in Housewor..." refers methods in this paper

  • ...For the qualitative analysis, transcripts and field notes were coded using word processing software (Charmaz, 2006); the main themes included husbands’ overall performance of housework, by specific task, and the explanations given for their degree of involvement....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors conducted an empirical study of the division of housework in lesbigay households in Sweden and found a strong pattern of egalitarianism that consists less in a 50% split between the couple in all household tasks but in the fluidity, complexity, and deliberateness in which housework is shared, especially among lesbian couples.
Abstract: Abstract Through thinking about and empirically analyzing lesbigay domestic arrangements in Sweden, this paper aims at broadening the understanding of gender and further developing the “doing gender” perspective as applied to housework division. It begins with a review of empirical findings of and the application of the “doing gender” approach to housework division, identifying problems associated with a focus on heterosexual units in a context where gender norms are seemingly homogeneous and conventional. To make full use of the perspective, it is necessary to allow for contradictions in and resistance against normative expectations of gender. Empirically, this translates to exploring domestic arrangements in a variety of settings with different normative expectations of gender. This paper takes a small step in this direction through undertaking an empirical study of the division of housework in lesbigay households in Sweden and finds a strong pattern of egalitarianism that consists less in a 50% split between the couple in all household tasks but in the fluidity, complexity, and deliberateness in which housework is shared, especially among lesbian couples. The analysis further underscores the importance of gender in lesbigay households.

1,919 citations


Additional excerpts

  • ...According to this approach, the performance (or nonperformance) of housework is an important means of “doing” or displaying behaviors expected of one’s gender (West & Zimmerman, 1987)....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: More than 200 articles and books on household labor published between 1989 and 1999 have been reviewed in this article, showing that women have reduced and men have increased slightly their hourly contributions to housework.
Abstract: This article reviews more than 200 scholarly articles and books on household labor published between 1989 and 1999. As a maturing area of study, this body of research has been concerned with understanding and documenting how housework is embedded in complex and shifting social processes relating to the well-being of families, the construction of gender, and the reproduction of society. Major theoretical, methodological, and empirical contributions to the study of household labor are summarized, and suggestions for further research are offered. In summary, women have reduced and men have increased slightly their hourly contributions to housework. Although men's relative contributions have increased, women still do at least twice as much routine housework as men. Consistent predictors of sharing include both women's and men's employment, earnings, gender ideology, and life-course issues. More balanced divisions of housework are associated with women perceiving fairness, experiencing less depression, and enjoying higher marital satisfaction.

1,604 citations


"Husbands’ Participation in Housewor..." refers background in this paper

  • ..., 1992; Saraff & Srivastava, 2010); therefore, an important question is the extent to which husbands “help” or assist their wives in these routine tasks, if at all (Coltrane, 2000)....

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  • ...…responsibilities for housework and child care in India (Jain & Belsky, 1997; Pant, 2000; Ramu, 1988; Roopnarine et al., 1992; Saraff & Srivastava, 2010); therefore, an important question is the extent to which husbands “help” or assist their wives in these routine tasks, if at all (Coltrane, 2000)....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper studied the relationship between social norms and social perceptions in intra-household gender dynamics, and found that women are less motivated than men by self-interest and might this affect bargaining outcomes.
Abstract: Highlighting the problems posed by a ''unitary'' conceptualization of the household, a number of economists have in recent years proposed alternative models. These models, especially those embodying the bargaining approach, provide a useful framework for analyzing gender relations and throwing some light on how gender asymmetries are constructed and contested. At the same time, the models have paid inadequate or no attention to some critical aspects of intra-household gender dynamics, such as: What factors (especially qualitative ones) affect bargaining power? What is the role of social norms and social perceptions in the bargaining process and how might these factors themselves be bargained over? Are women less motivated than men by self-interest and might this affect bargaining outcomes? Most discussions on bargaining also say little about gender relations beyond the household, and about the links between extra-household and intra-household bargaining power. This paper spells out the nature of these com...

1,530 citations


"Husbands’ Participation in Housewor..." refers background in this paper

  • ...Many sociologists and feminist economists have criticized the bargaining model for its gender neutrality and assumption that women can translate their incomes into decision-making power across all household domains (Agarwal, 1997; Kabeer, 1997; Kantor, 2003; Malhotra & Mather, 1997; Xu & Lai, 2002)....

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  • ...Social scientists have developed bargaining power, or relative resources, theory to explain how access to resources determines decision-making power within households (Agarwal, 1997; Blood & Wolfe, 1960; Malhotra & Mather, 1997; McElroy, 1990)....

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  • ...In these settings, traditional gender norms often set limits on the household domains in which bargaining can occur (Agarwal, 1997)....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper found that the more a husband relies on his wife for economic support, the less housework he does, and that by doing less household chores, economically dependent husbands also become "dogender."
Abstract: Why does housework remain "women's work"? Some scholars argue that economic dependency comples wives to exchange unpaid labor for a share of the husband's income. Others claim that wives perform housework-and husbands avoid it-to enact symbolically their femininity or masculinity. This article examines both perspectives and finds that among wives the link between housework and the transfer of earnings in marriage complies with rules of economic exchange. However, the more a husband relies on his wife for economic support, the less housework he does. It appears that by doing less housework, economically dependent husbands also "dogender."

1,289 citations


"Husbands’ Participation in Housewor..." refers background or methods in this paper

  • ...Most previous research has collapsed housework activities into single measures, such as hours involved in a range of chores in a day or week (e.g., Brines, 1994; Schneider, 2011)....

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  • ...With respect to domestic labor, studies from the United States, the United Kingdom, and Sweden have found that as women’s earnings share increases, husbands undertake more housework (Brines, 1994; Evertsson & Nermo, 2004; Kan, 2008; Pinto & Coltrane, 2009)....

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  • ...…from the United States and Australia have documented a curvilinear relationship between earnings share and housework whereby men perform the least domestic labor when women are the main breadwinners (Bittman et al., 2003; Brines, 1994; Evertsson & Nermo, 2004; Greenstein, 2000; Schneider, 2011)....

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  • ...Much of this work supports bargaining, or relative resources, theory, which holds that individuals with greater relative earnings have power to influence decisions within the household, including the distribution of domestic labor (e.g., Brines, 1994; Kan, 2008)....

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  • ...In support of this theory, studies from the United States and Australia have documented a curvilinear relationship between earnings share and housework whereby men perform the least domestic labor when women are the main breadwinners (Bittman et al., 2003; Brines, 1994; Evertsson & Nermo, 2004; Greenstein, 2000; Schneider, 2011)....

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