Who’s Still Doing The Housework?

For most of American history, gender roles were rigidly defined: Men went to work while women stayed home to cook, clean, and care for the children.

Stereotypes about gender have been changing in recent decades, however. There’s now almost universal support for women to pursue careers or political office, and women today tend to get more education than men.

But in one area, change has been minimal: Even young people, who tend to support gender equality in many facets of life, are holding on to traditional views about who does certain chores. A recent survey from Gallup found that among opposite-sex couples, those ages 18 to 34 were no more likely than older couples to divide most household work equitably. And a sociology study published this year found that when high school seniors were asked about their ideal family arrangement with young children, almost a quarter said it was for the man to work full time and the woman to stay home, a larger share than desired any other arrangement, including having both parents work. A majority said a father staying home was unacceptable.

Experts say these results show just how long it can take for societal expectations to truly shift.

“If young people can’t even envision a model of what men’s time at home might look like, that’s evidence that our beliefs about gender are really strong and sticky,” says Joanna Pepin, a sociologist at the University of Texas at Austin and one of the authors of the high school study. “That’s yet another thing that’s getting in the way of social change.”

For most of American history, gender roles seemed unchangeable. Men went to work while women stayed home to cook, clean, and care for the children.

But stereotypes about gender have been changing in recent decades. There’s now almost universal support for women to pursue careers or political office. Women today also tend to get more education than men.

But in one area, there hasn’t been a lot of change: chores. Young people tend to support gender equality in many parts of life. But even they are holding on to traditional views about who does certain chores. A recent survey from Gallup found that among opposite-sex couples, those ages 18 to 34 were no more likely than older couples to divide most household work equitably. A sociology study published this year explored high school seniors’ thoughts on the ideal family arrangement with young children. Almost a quarter said it was best for the man to work full time and the woman to stay home. That’s larger than the share that preferred any other arrangement, including having both parents work. A majority said a father staying home was unacceptable.

Experts say these results show just how long it can take for societal views to truly shift.

“If young people can’t even envision a model of what men’s time at home might look like, that’s evidence that our beliefs about gender are really strong and sticky,” says Joanna Pepin, a sociologist at the University of Texas at Austin and one of the authors of the high school study. “That’s yet another thing that’s getting in the way of social change.”

Surveys over several decades show that women now do a little less housework and child care, and men do a little more. But a significant gap remains: Women still spend about an hour more a day than men on child care and an hour more on housework, particularly daily indoor chores such as cooking or cleaning. Men, meanwhile, are more likely to do occasional outdoor chores, such as yard work (see graph, below).

The disparity affects other aspects of women’s equality: The extra time women spend on domestic labor is a leading cause of the gender gaps in pay and promotions at work, economists say. For every dollar a man earns, women make about 81 cents, according to a 2020 PayScale report. Men also hold about 62 percent of manager-level positions.

Researchers have different ideas about why the division of labor has been so slow to change, despite women’s other gains. One of the simplest explanations: Men might be happy to have a partner bringing in another paycheck, but not happy to do more chores. Many young people face unstable employment, student debt, and rising housing and child care costs. Perhaps young families are open to women’s equality outside the home because they need a second income, experts say, but their attitudes about gender roles haven’t actually evolved as much. Or it’s possible that economic uncertainty is contributing to the unequal division.

Surveys over several decades show that women now do a little less housework and child care, and men do a little more. But a significant gap remains. Women still spend about an hour more a day than men on child care. They also spend an hour more on housework, particularly daily indoor chores such as cooking or cleaning. Men, meanwhile, are more likely to do occasional outdoor chores, such as yard work (see graph, below).

The divide affects other aspects of women’s equality. The extra time women spend on domestic labor is a leading cause of the gender gaps in pay and promotions at work, economists say. For every dollar a man earns, women make about 81 cents, according to a 2020 PayScale report. Men also hold about 62 percent of manager-level positions.

Researchers have different ideas about why the division of labor has been so slow to change, despite women’s other gains. They have come up with at least one simple explanation. Men might be happy to have a partner bringing in another paycheck, but not happy to do more chores. Many young people face unstable employment and student debt. They’re also up against rising housing and child care costs. Experts say that young families might only be open to women’s equality outside the home because they need a second income. But their attitudes about gender roles haven’t actually evolved as much. Or it’s possible that economic uncertainty is contributing to the unequal division.

“Even the most committed couples to equal relationships find themselves making decisions based on financial necessity,” Pepin says.

Norms about what men are supposed to do also have an effect, researchers say. The idea of masculinity is tied to earning an income and avoiding things that are considered feminine. It starts in childhood; a University of Maryland analysis found that boys ages 15 to 19 do about half an hour of chores a day, while girls do about 45 minutes. The girls are also paid less for their work.

“Chores are really practice for adult living, so the problem is it just gets generationally perpetuated,” says Christia Spears Brown, a psychology professor at the University of Kentucky.

“Even the most committed couples to equal relationships find themselves making decisions based on financial necessity,” Pepin says.

Norms about what men are supposed to do also have an effect, researchers say. The idea of masculinity is tied to earning an income and avoiding things that are considered feminine. It starts in childhood. A University of Maryland analysis found that boys ages 15 to 19 do about half an hour of chores a day, while girls do about 45 minutes. The girls are also paid less for their work.

“Chores are really practice for adult living, so the problem is it just gets generationally perpetuated,” says Christia Spears Brown, a psychology professor at the University of Kentucky.

Claire Cain Miller reports on gender, family, and work for the Times.

Claire Cain Miller reports on gender, family, and work for the Times.