The two line graphs illustrate the changing trends in the proportion of families who owned a washing machine, refrigerator and vacuum cleaner, as well as the amount of time housekeepers dedicated to house chores in one nation, across the span of a hundred years from 1920 to 2019.
It is evident that households with electrical appliances are on the rise, in contrast to the decreasing trend in the time households spend on housework. This suggests that housework has become less time-consuming over the century, with more families benefiting from the convenience of electrical appliances in their homes.
Firstly, the prevalence of electrical appliances in homes has become increasingly common. The rate of possession of washing machines rose by approximately 35%, from 40% in 1920 to around 75% in 2019.
A similar pattern applies to refrigerators and vacuum cleaners, with the former surging from almost 0% ownership in households in 1920 to occupying a central place in every home by 2019, while the latter experienced a growth in popularity from 30% to 100% during the same period.
It is noticeable that, while electrical appliances are becoming more prevalent in households, the time homeowners spend on chores follows a reversed trend. In 1920, chores took up to 50 hours weekly, whereas by 2019, housework only demanded close to 10 hours per week.