Domestic division of labour
- Created by: Steff Wellington
- Created on: 07-04-16 16:17
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- Domestic division of labour
- Parsons: instrumental and expressive roles
- Husband has instrumental role - achieving success at work so he can provide for family financially. Breadwinner
- Wife has expressive role - primary socialisation of children and meeting family's emotional needs. Homemaker, full-time housewife rather than wage earner.
- Division of labour based on biological differences - women nurturing and men providing. Beneficial to both men and women.
- Criticisms
- Michael Young and Peter Willmott (1962) - men are taking greater share of domestic tasks and more wives becoming wage earners.
- Feminists reject view that division of labour is natural. Argue it only benefits men.
- Joint and segregated conjugal roles
- Segregated conjugal roles - couple gave separate roles: male breadwinner and female homemaker/ carer.
- Joint conjugal roles - couples share tasks such as housework and childcare and spend leisure time together.
- Young and Willmott - identified pattern of segregated conjuga roles in traditional working-class extended families in 1950s.
- Women full-time housewives and responsible for housework and childcare, helped by female relatives. Limited leisure was spent with female kin.
- Men breadwinners, played small part in home life and spent leisure time with work friends in pubs and working men's clubs,
- Women full-time housewives and responsible for housework and childcare, helped by female relatives. Limited leisure was spent with female kin.
- Feminist view of housework
- Reject 'march of progress' view. Little has changed - men and women remain unequal, women still do most housework.
- Family and society are male-dominated or patriarchal.
- Ann Oakley (1974) criticises Y+W- claims are exaggerated,
- Own research found some evidence of help from husband but no trend towards symmetry/
- 15% husbands had high level of participation in house work and 25% had high level participation in childcare
- Own research found some evidence of help from husband but no trend towards symmetry/
- Mary Boulton (1983) fewer than 20% of husbands had major role in childcare.
- Y+W exaggerate men's contribution by looking at tasks rather than responsibilities.
- Father may help with tasks but mother was responsible for child's security and well-being
- Alan Warde and Kevin Hetherington (1993) - sex-typing of domestic tasks remain strong
- Wives 30 times more likely to b last person to have done washing while husbands four times more likely to be last person to wash car.
- Men would only carry out 'female' tasks when partners were not around.
- Some evidence of slight change of attitude among younger men. No longer assumed women should do housework, more likely to think they were doing less than their fair share.
- Reject 'march of progress' view. Little has changed - men and women remain unequal, women still do most housework.
- Symmetrical family
- Y+W take 'march of progress' view. See family life improving for all members - more equal.
- women now go out to work - may be part time not full.
- Men help with housework and childcare
- Couples now spend leisure time together
- Symmetrical family more common in younger couples and geographically isolated.
- Changes in womens position - married women go to work
- geographically mobility - more couples living away from home
- New technology - labour saving devices
- Higher standards of living
- Y+W take 'march of progress' view. See family life improving for all members - more equal.
- Parsons: instrumental and expressive roles
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