Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Perception of Fairness in Household Labor Division: The Effect of Gender Values, Relationship Dynamics, and Culture

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Society Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Women perform about two-thirds of household labor; however, they still find this allocation to be fair (Koster et al., 2021). Although the perception of fairness in household labor division has been examined frequently, as a contribution to the literature this study aimed to investigate the effect of gender, culture, and relationship dynamics experimentally in a better-controlled environment. Two views, traditional and egalitarian, were compared under various conditions e.g., the household labor division between same-sex couples and opposite-sex couples, and same-sex and opposite-sex friends. As a result, the egalitarian view was supported more likely and found fairer than the traditional view by the participants, particularly by Turkish female participants. Moreover, friends are considered to share the household labor more equally than couples. The misperception of unequal household labor division was the result of multiple conditions such as culture, gender, and relationship dynamics. To create more equal environments all these conditions should be considered carefully, and new policies should be proposed accordingly.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. An a priori power analysis using the G*Power 3.1 computer program (Faul, Erdfelder, Buchner & Lang, 2009) demonstrated that a total of 146 people would be needed to detect the effects (f = .25) with 85% power (1 - β) using a fixed ANOVA for a between subjects design (8 independent groups) with alpha at .05.

References

  • Bartley, S. J., Blanton, P. W., & Gilliard, J. L. (2005). Husbands and wives in dual-earner marriages: decision-making, gender role attitudes, division of household labor, and equity. Marriage and Family Review, 37, 69–94.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Batalova, J. A., & Cohen, P. N. (2002). Premarital cohabitation and housework: Couples in cross-national perspective. Journal of Marriage & Family, 64 (3): 743–755.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bianchi, S., Casper, L., & King, B. (2005). Work, family, health, and well-being. Mahwah, NJ, US: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Botkin, D. R., Weeks, M. O. N., & Morris, J. E. (2000). Changing marriage role expectations: 1961-1996. Sex Roles, 42, 933–942.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Braun, M., Lewin-Epstein, N., Stier, H., & Baumgartner, M. (2008). Perceived equity in the gendered division of household labor. Journal of Marriage & Family, 70, 1145–56.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carriero, R. (2011). Perceived fairness and satisfaction with the division of housework among dual-earner couples in Italy. Marriage & Family Review, 47(7), 436–458. https://doi.org/10.1080/01494929.2011.619299

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Clark, M. S. & Mills, J. (2012). A theory of communal (and exchange) relationships. In M. S. Clark, J. Mills, P. A. M. van Lange, A. W. Kruglanski, E. T. Higgins (Eds.), Handbook of theories of social psychology: Volume two (pp. 232-250). Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Clark, M. S. & Mills, J. (1979). Interpersonal attraction in exchange and communal relationships. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 37, 12-24.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Davis, S. N. (2010). Is justice contextual? Married women’s perception of fairness of the division of household labor in 12 nations. Journal of Comparative Family Studies, 41, 19-41.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Davis, S. N., & Greenstein, T. N. (2009). Gender ideology: Components, predictors, and consequences. Annual Review of Sociology, 35 (1), 87–105.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dempsey, K. C. (1999). Attempting to explain women’s perceptions of fairness of the division of housework. Journal of Family Studies, 5, 3-24.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Doan, L. & Quadlin, N. (2019). Partner characteristics and perceptions of responsibility for housework and child care. Journal of Marriage and Family, 81, 145-163.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ensari, N., & Murphy, S. E. (2003). Cross-cultural variations in leadership perceptions and attribution of charisma to the leader. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 92(1-2), 52–66.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Faul, F., Erdfelder, E., Buchner, A. & Lang, A. G. (2009) Statistical Power Analyses Using G*Power 3.1: Tests for Correlation and Regression Analyses. Behavior Research Methods, 41, 1149-1160.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ferree, M. M. (1990). Beyond separate spheres: Feminism and family research. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 52, 866-88

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fuwa M, & Tsutsui J. (2010). A cross-national comparison of the perceived fairness of the division of household labor. Japanese Journal of Family Sociology, 22 (1), 52–63.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gager, C. T. (1998). The role of valued outcomes, justifications, and comparison of referents in perceptions of fairness among dual-earner couples. Journal Family Issues, 19 (5), 622–48.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Geist, C. (2005). The welfare state and the home: Regime differences in the domestic division of labour. European Sociological Review, 31(1), 23–41.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Greenstein, T. N. (1996). Gender ideology and perceptions of the fairness of the division of household labor: Effects on marital quality. Social Forces, 74 (3), 1029–42.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Greenstein T. N. (2009). National context, family satisfaction, and fairness in the division of household labor. Journal of Marriage & Family, 71 (4), 1039–51.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gupta, S. (1999). The effects of transitions in marital status on men’s performance of housework. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 61, 700 – 711.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hürriyet Daily News (2015). Mothers' only career should be motherhood, Turkish health minister says. Retrieved at https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/mothers-only-career-should-be-motherhood-turkish-health-minister-says-76360

  • Jepsen, L. K., & Jepsen, C. (2002). An empirical analysis of the matching patterns of same-sex and opposite-sex couples. Demography, 39, 435–453.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kaĝitçibaşi, C., & Ataca, B. (2005). Value of children and family change: A three-decade portrait from Turkey. Applied Psychology: An International Review, 54, 317-337.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • King, L. A., & King, D.W. (1985). Sex-role egalitarianism: Biographical and personality correlates. Psychological Reports, 57, 787–792.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Knight, C. R., & Brinton, M. C. (2017). One egalitarianism or several? Two decades of gender-role attitude change in Europe. American Journal of Sociology, 122 (5), 1485–1532.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Korkut, U., & Eslen-Ziya, H. (2011). The impact of conservative discourses in family policies, population politics, and gender rights in Poland and Turkey. Social Politics, 18(3), 387-418.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Koster, T., Poortman, A., van der Lippe, T. & Kleingeld, P. (2021). Fairness perceptions of the division of household labor: Housework and childcare. Journal of Family Issues,https://doi.org/10.1177/0192513X21993899

  • Koydemir-Özden, S. (2010). Self-aspects, perceived social support, gender, and willingness to seek psychological help. International Journal of Mental Health, 39(3), 44-60.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kroska, A. (2004). Divisions of domestic work: Revising and expanding the theoretical explanations. Journal of Family Issues, 25, 900 – 932.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Larsen, K. S., & Long, E. (1988). Attitudes toward sex-roles: Traditional or egalitarian? Sex Roles, 19, 1–12.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lennon, M. C & Rosenfield, S. (1994). Relative fairness and the division of housework: The importance of options. American Journal of Sociology, 199 (2), 506–31.

  • Major, B. (1987). Gender, justice, and the psychology of entitlement. In Shaver P, Hendrick C. Sex and Gender (pp.124–48). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

  • Mills, J. & Clark, M. S. (1982). Exchange and communal relationships. In L. Wheeler (ed.), Review of Personality and Social Psychology (pp. 121-144). Sage: Beverly Hill, CA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Moore, M. R. (2008). Gendered power relations among women: A study of household decision making in Black, lesbian stepfamilies. American Sociological Review, 73, 335–356.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nakamura, M. & Akiyoshi, M. (2015). What determines the perception of fairness regarding household division of labor between spouses? PLoS ONE, 10 (7). doi:https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0132608.

  • Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. (2021, January 03). Employment: Time spent in paid and unpaid work, by sex.https://stats.oecd.org/index.aspx?queryid=54757

    Google Scholar 

  • Oshio, T., Nozaki, K. & Kobayashi, M. (2013). Division of household labor and marital satisfaction in China, Japan and Korea. Journal of Family Economic Issues, 34, 211-223.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Quadlin, N., & Doan, L. (2018). Sex-typed chores and the city: Gender, urbanicity, and housework. Gender & Society: Advance online publication.https://doi.org/10.1177/0891243218787758.

  • Reis, H., Clark, M. S., & Holmes, J. (2004). Perceived partner responsiveness as an organizing construct in the study of intimacy and closeness. In D. Mashek and A. Aron (eds.), The Handbook of Closeness and Intimacy. Lawrence Erlbaum Associate: Mahwah, NJ.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sanchez, L. & Kane, E. W. (1996). Women’s and men’s constructions of perceptions of housework fairness. Journal of Family Issues, 17(3), 358–87.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schneider, D. (2012). Gender deviance and household work: The role of occupation. American Journal of Sociology, 117, 1029–1072.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shechory, M., & Ziv, R. (2007). Relationships between gender role attitudes, role division, and perception of equity among heterosexual, gay and lesbian couples. Sex Roles, 56, 629–638.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Toth, K. (2009). Division of domestic labor and marital satisfaction: A cross-cultural analysis. Dissertation Abstracts International: Section B: The Sciences and Engineering, 69(8-B).

  • Uskul, A. K., Hynie, M., & Lalonde, R. N. (2004). Interdependence as a mediator between culture and interpersonal closeness for Euro-Canadians and Turks. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 35(2), 174-191.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • World Economic Forum (2020). Gender gap report. Retrieved at https://reports.weforum.org/global-gender-gap-report-2020/the-global-gender-gap-index-2020/results-and-analysis/

  • World Values Survey (2020). LGBT rights in Turkey. Retrieved at https://www.equaldex.com/region/turkey.

  • Wunderink, S. & Niehoff, M. (1997). Division of household labour: Facts and judgements. Economist (Leiden), 145 (3), 399–419.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Young, M., Wallace, J. E., & Polachek, A. J. (2015). Gender differences in perceived domestic task equity: A study of professionals. Journal of Family Issues, 36(13), 1751–1781. https://doi.org/10.1177/0192513X13508403

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zuo, J. & Bian, Y. (2001). Gendered resources, division of housework, and perceived fairness: A case in urban China. Journal of Marriage & Family, 63(4), 1122–34.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Medgar Evers College, CUNY, Brooklyn, NY, USA

    Sümeyra Tosun

Authors
  1. Sümeyra Tosun
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sümeyra Tosun.

Ethics declarations

Ethics Approval

The institutional Review Board of Medgar Evers College approved the procedure.

Consent for Publication

I, the undersigned, give my consent for the publication of identifiable details, which can include photograph(s) and/or videos and/or case history and/or details within the text (“Material”) to be published in the above Journal and Article.

Conflicts of Interest/Competing Interests

The author certify that they have NO affiliations with or involvement in any organization or entity with any financial interest, or non-financial interest in the subject matter or materials discussed in this manuscript.

Additional information

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Appendices

Appendix 1

The story

Hannah/Mike and Mary/John are friends/couple who get along very well and they decide to move in together. Both of them have the same work schedule from 8 am to 5 pm and earn good income. Together they rent a house and move in. One or two weeks pass with the excitement of their new house. After they unpack everything, they arrange a meeting to discuss how to share the housework.

Hannah suggests that the share should be based on their skills and abilities. So she says:

  • Mary, I know that you are very skillful in cooking and cleaning. When you enter the kitchen, you do miracles. Vacuuming, mopping, dusting, laundry, ironing…. There are all in your nature. Let’s make these duties yours. As you know me, I am stronger than you, physically though. I can do all the heavy-duty work, like lifting, carrying. I can also repair stuff as needed. What do you think?

Mary, on the other hand, thinks differently. To her, the workshare should be equal. So she says:

  • Hannah, I think we need to share the work equally. To me, we are both able to do all of the housework. We can learn how to do it, if we don’t know already. We work hard in our jobs and when we arrive home, we both are so tired. So we need to do the household work together or we should take turns. We can cook or shop for groceries together or we can take turns. Or else I will be even more tired if we follow your suggestion. What do you think?

Questions:

  • Which character’s work share argument is more reflective of your own opinion?

  • Rate the degree of your agreement on the first character’s suggestion from 1 to 7 (1 being definitely disagree and 7 being definitely agree)

  • Rate how fair you think the first character’s suggestion is from 1 to 7 (1 being definitely unfair and 7 being definitely fair)

  • Rate the degree of your agreement on the second character’s suggestion from 1 to 7 (1 being definitely disagree and 7 being definitely agree)

  • Rate how fair you think the second character’s suggestion is from 1 to 7 (1 being definitely unfair and 7 being definitely fair)

Appendix 2

Table 5 The results of American sample only
Full size table

Appendix 3

Table 6 The results of Turkish sample only
Full size table

Appendix 4

Table 7 The results of cross-cultural comparison
Full size table

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Tosun, S. Perception of Fairness in Household Labor Division: The Effect of Gender Values, Relationship Dynamics, and Culture. Soc 59, 426–440 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12115-022-00661-8

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12115-022-00661-8

Keywords

Search

Navigation