DOMESTIC DIVISION OF LABOUR - IELTS Reading Answers & Explanations

You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 14-25, which are based on Reading Passage 2 on the following pages.

DOMESTIC DIVISION OF LABOUR

A Domestic division of labour refers to the division of tasks, roles and duties, within the household. With the increased entry of married women into formal employment, sociologists began to look more closely at the processes that linked home and workplace, including the question of whether or not women's increased involvement in paid labour led to a renegotiation of the "traditional" domestic roles and organisation of domestic labour. A huge empirical and theoretical literature was then generated in a relatively short time.

B Work within the family context takes a variety of forms. In many Western households in the 1990s, it may include tasks such as caring for members of the family, contributing to the household finances, maintaining the house, interacting with kin and establishing and sustaining community relationships. As a way of fostering domestic harmony and creating a manageable routine, some couples choose one of three different styles of household role division: traditional, egalitarian or collaborative.

C Most people who fit the traditional pattern are characteristically men and women who are conventionally married, or have been living together as a couple for some time. The man and woman have totally separate spheres of influence and responsibility. For instance, the husband or male partner is usually the chief decision maker and the major financial provider. He brings in the bulk of money and has the final say over major household purchases and important financial transactions. The wife or female partner engages in child care and household management, of which the latter also includes maintaining contact with relatives and family members who may not live under the same roof.

D In ideal situations, an egalitarian style is typified by an equal interchange in household tasks: for example, one partner does the dishes for one week, while the other cooks. Then, the roles are reversed for the next week. As an alternative, individual jobs may be divided equally, so that one partner handles half of the household tasks and the other partner takes on the remaining equal proportion. However, this 50/50 scenario does not usually result in a permanent arrangement some specialisation does tend to creep in. Human beings are not machines to be switched on and off at precise moments, nor is society organised in such a way as to allow a man to do exactly half the breadwinning and a woman to do exactly half the child rearing.

E The collaborative style is a compromise between the two extremes of traditional and egalitarian. In these families, partners can specialize in household activities and the inclination is towards doing what one is expert at or prefers. Typically, a woman may do all the cleaning while a man may do all the cooking because they choose to do so. It does not follow patriarchal prescription where a father always has foremost family authority and where the mother's domain is centred around the children and the household. It is guided by personal interest rather than social convention. As such, decisions may be deferred to the one who is the specialist in the particular area. In some cases, couples may reverse their selected roles and the woman may become the main breadwinner, while the man may in turn be the primary child care-giver.

F Traditional, egalitarian and collaborative styles are viewed by some as being dependent on female and male gender-role attitudes, both of self arid partner. In other words, personality differences are said to determine whether men and women adopt one division of labour style in preference to another. Femininity or female gender-role stereotypes are commonly associated with the emotional, nurturing qualities usually ascribed to a woman, while masculinity or a male gender-role stereotype is seen in the context of risk-taking, assertiveness and independence – usually attributed to men.

G An opposing view sees the three family divisions of labour styles as a reflection of the progressive changes couples make in response to changing life situations, rather than being an aspect of personality. Essentially, adult women and men modify their behaviour within the context of family life, in accordance with current situations. It is these life situations, rather than people, that should be categorised as typically feminine or masculine. For example, when a couple, attends to a baby or cares for a sick relative, it is the feminine qualities that are foremost. In contrast, competition and the degree of aggressiveness often required an outside employment, are associated with stereotypical masculine qualities.

H So, depending upon demands in life situations, men and women assign what they believe are the appropriate masculine and feminine characteristics to particular contexts. Moreover, depending upon how stereotyped the activities are that they are involved in, gender-roles may alter.