Topic 1 - Couples

Topic 1 - Couples

1. Division of labour.

   • Parsons (1955) Instrumental and expressive roles.
     • Young and Willmott (1962): Men are now doing more domestic tasks and women are now becoming wage earners.
     • The roles of men and women are 'natural'.
       • Feminists believe roles are not natural. They argue that it only benefits men.
   • Elizabeth Bott (1957) Joint and segregated conjugal roles.
     • Young and Wilmott (1950s): Found that WC families in Bethnal Green had segregated conjugal roles.
       • Males not involved with house roles. They spend time with other male friends. Females would do house work and help other female relatives.
   • Young and Wilmott (1973) The symmetrical family.
     • 'March of progress' view on the history of the family. Roles are more similar.
       • -Women now go out to work. -Men now help with housework and childcare. -Couples now spend more time together than separately.
       • Feminists reject this view. Argue that men an women remain unequal.
         • Oakley (1974): Argues that their claims are exaggurated.
           • Men's 'help' could be simply taking the children for a walk.
           • She found that men would participate more in childcare as it's more fun.
         • Boulton (1983): Fewer than 20% of husbands had major roles in childcare.
       • Ward and Hetherington (1993): Men only do 'female' tasks when their partner were not around to do them.
     • Reasons for rise of symmetrical families
       • 1) Changes in women's position. 2)Geographical mobility. 3)New technology 4)Higher standards of living.
   • Oakley (19th century) the rise of the housewife role
     • Rise of factory production led to the separation of paid work.
     • Housewife role was socially constructed.

2. The impact of paid work.

   • Gershuny (1994) the trends towards equality.
     • Women working full-time is leading to a more equal division.
     • Sullivan (2000): Studies found that men did more domestic labour than before.
     • Crompton (1997): Earnings remain unequal.
   • Silver (1987) and Schor (1993) The commercialisation of housework.
     • Housework has become 'commericialised'.
       • Goods that housewives previously had to produce themselves are now mass-produced.
     • Women working means they can afford the goods.
     • Poorer women cannot afford goods.
   • The dual burden.
     • Ferri and Smith (1996) Found that increased employment of women had little impact on the domestic division of labour.
     • Lydia Morris (1990) Found that unemployed men saw domestic work as feminine so it was avoided.

3. Recources and decision-making in household.

4. Domestic violence.