Analyzing Gender Roles in Housework Norms from a Quantitative Perspective

Abstract

Social expectations stemming from obsolete stereotypical ideologies have forced numerous wives and mothers to undertake disproportionately more housework than their male counterparts. In this paper, we aim to evaluate the economic aspect of the intrinsic value of uncompensated housework by analyzing a recent dataset from China as a representative example with the largest population and the many disparities coming from it. The quantitative analysis is achieved via two rigorous approaches: calculating the average economic value created by unpaid housework and creating a gender index to compare different levels of gender equality in the household globally. Scientific analysis based on statistical models could lay a firm foundation to shift out-of-date social norms and largely motivate national authorities to establish more women-friendly policies for gender inequality in household or work settings.