Men in 'female' jobs do more housework

Researchers analysed data collected from 1981 to 2009 and found that married or cohabiting men who worked in traditionally "female jobs" such as teaching, child care or nursing spent more time doing housework than those in traditionally male jobs.

In addition, the wives and partners of these men spent less time doing housework than the wives and partners of men in traditionally male jobs.

Married or cohabiting women who worked in traditionally female jobs spent more time on housework than those in traditionally male jobs, and their husbands or partners spent less time doing housework, according to the study, scheduled for presentation Tuesday at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association in New York City.

"Importantly, occupational sex composition is largely unrelated to housework for single men or women, suggesting that occupation influences housework through interactions and negotiations between romantic partners," study author Elizabeth Aura McClintock, a sociologist at the University of Notre Dame, said in an association news release.

In general, women do about two-thirds of household chores, according to the release, but this study showed that the division of labour may depend on what they or their male partners do for a living.

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