It's Not My Job!.......

 In earlier years women were the nurturer of the familyand the home. Husbands worked outside the home oraway at other locations. Starting with the 1950s Americanshave experienced a steady increase in women workingaway from the home. A change in the traditional dailyroutines of women causes a change in caring for the homeand the family.What Does Research Reveal?Research shows women today do two-thirds of thehousehold chores. Men would have to increase their householdlabor contribution by 60% to achieve an equality levelwith women’s work.Husbands with a higher educational level are morewilling to share in the tasks. Women’s education levelseems to have little effect. Does this mean we need tomarry a man with a degree? No. It just means that we maysocialize some men to view household labor differentlythan others.Time spent in caring for children is generally greater ifthe parent matches the gender of the child. Traditionallyboys spend more time with fathers and girls spend moretime with their mothers. When children are young, bothparents spend more parenting time. As children growolder, their fathers spend less time, but only employedwomen spend less time with older children.The strongest single predictor for a husband to share intasks is the number of hours his wife works. One exceptionis children-related tasks. Spouses who are close to the sameage find that men will contribute more to household tasks.Husbands do a greater share of the household tasks whenthey are the only parent present in the home. We needmore research to detect if the time of day makes a differencefor sharing tasks.Additional research shows that when a woman has aliberal view of the male role, he will share more householdtasks. Liberal views include men in meal preparation,parenting, and house-cleaning roles. Could it be womenare deterring others from sharing the chores? Womenmay discourage their spouse and children from helping bycriticizing efforts. A compliment and gentle training willbe helpful.One of Life’s Little LessonsIt takes time to teach others how to share in householdchores. The reward in sharing tasks can far outweigh theteaching time. Families will have more time for activitiesand special interests. Couples who share household tasksfind greater marital satisfaction.What Is a Spouse/Parent to Do?Have you tried to get your family involved with householdchores? Let them know a clean house, laundry, and meals are responsibilities to be shared by everyone. Havea family meeting and discuss what each family membercan do to share in the household chores. Try these suggestionsand add your own.Suggestions to Divide Household Tasks• Present a united front. Involve your spouse andother adults before requesting help from children.• Pick a relaxed time for a family meeting. When allfamily members are in a good mood, they will bemore receptive to requests for help.• List chores that other family members can complete.Assign jobs to each family member or rotateon a biweekly or monthly basis.• Make job cards that tell how to complete a cleaningjob. Include products needed and where they are inyour home.• Keep a shopping list on the refrigerator so everyonecan write down cleaning supplies or grocery items.• Assemble a cleaning supply tote. Keep the tote in acentral location or one on each floor of your home.(Keep all chemicals out of the reach of young childrenand family pets.)Change happens slowly. Be patient and give lots ofcompliments. If you keep doing the work, nobody will seethe need to share in the tasks. When everyone shares in thework, your house becomes a family home.ResourcesOhio State University Extension offers several 4-Hfamily living, equipment, and food projects that would behelpful in teaching household tasks.