Men, Women and Household Work

In this book, Jacqui Goodnow and Jennifer Bowes explore different and more equitable ways of sharing of households' work. Can it work when the traditional division of household labour is set aside for a new pattern? How does the work get done, how does a new work pattern come about, and how do men and women feel about the work and their relationship? These questions are part of a rise in interest, in research and everyday life, in the way household jobs are distributed, and are the...
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In this book, Jacqui Goodnow and Jennifer Bowes explore different and more equitable ways of sharing of households' work. Can it work when the traditional division of household labour is set aside for a new pattern? How does the work get done, how does a new work pattern come about, and how do men and women feel about the work and their relationship? These questions are part of a rise in interest, in research and everyday life, in the way household jobs are distributed, and are the lead questions in this study. The book is based on interviews with fifty couples who do share the work of the household. It explores the dynamics of sharing the work; the nature of the work patterns and how they change the styles of talk and negotiation that couples use and the tension points and 'bumpy patches' along the way. It reports on the principles and goals which influence sharing; fairness, the quality of a relationship, and standards and preferences within the workplace and home. It shows how factors outside the relationship affect the decision to share, for example friends, family and the womens movement. In a highly readable fashion, the book uses the couples' own words to bring to life the way stereotypes are set aside and new patterns negotiated and established. It makes a major contribution to the understanding of gender and work, and of changes in everyday life when couples decide to share household work.