Work in the household

Couples are satisfied despite unequal distribution

According to statistics, women continue to take on more unpaid household and family work than men. However, couples are not dissatisfied with this in most cases, as a new study by the University of Vienna shows.

(Bild: lightpoet/stock.adobe.com)

According to statistics, women continue to take on more unpaid household and family work than men. However, they are not dissatisfied with this, as a new study by the Austrian Institute of Family Research (ÖIF) at the University of Vienna shows.

The study surveyed 1577 people in Austria between the ages of 16 and 88. The key finding: although a fair division of labor in the household is considered important (by 91.5 percent), it is not always practiced in practice (not by around one in five people). Nevertheless, the majority of respondents (89.6%) are very or at least somewhat satisfied with the division of work they practice. For example, what is expected of the other person and what non-material services are provided by the partner play a role. This can be emotional affection, such as responding to each other.

The more affection I receive, the more likely I am to agree to an unequal division of the household. This applies to women more than men.

Soziologin und Studienautorin Christine Geserick

"The more affection I receive, the more likely I am to agree to an unequal division of the household. This applies to women more than men (...). It underlines how complex and fragile satisfaction is where social relationships are based on love," write the authors of the study, led by Christine Geserick.

Younger people expect a fairer distribution
Another finding of the survey is that women take on more unpaid work than men, especially if there are children in the household, if the income difference is large, if the couple is older (aged 65 and over) or lives in a rural area. Conversely, teenagers and young adults up to the age of 20 expect a particularly egalitarian division of labor - "fairer than with their parents", said sociologist Geserick. "We see a difference between 28 to 55-year-olds compared to the over-65s. And we see the difference not only in aspiration, but also in practice."

Activities such as grocery shopping, taking out the garbage, washing and ironing clothes, cooking, planning vacations and taking care of television and the Internet were examined. In most areas, the majority of the work is done by women.