Labor Orientations:The Role Of Husbands’ and Wives’

Relative Job Characteristics In Shaping Men’sHousehold Labor Participation

Richard N. Pitt, Ph.D.Vanderbilt University - Sociology

Family

SocialPsychology

Gender

Education

Human Capital Human Capital AccumulationAccumulation

Men’s StudiesMen’s Studies

Structure & Structure & PersonalityPersonality

Household Household LaborLabor

1. Women do more housework than men, but only twice as much. Women average 26 hours per week, while men average 14 hours (NSFH1, 1987)

2. Both men’s ACTUAL and RELATIVE contributions to housework are growing.

BROAD QUESTIONBROAD QUESTION

Why Do Men Do Why Do Men Do Housework?Housework?

Job CharacteristicsJob Characteristics

Three Common Predictors of Household Labor Allocation

RELATIVE RESOURCES

Education, age, income, occupational status, negative effects of possible divorce

TIME AVAILABILITY

Number of hours worked, employments shifts (e.g., off between5pm and 12am, no weekends)

GENDER IDEOLOGY

Traditional attitudes of spouse and respondents

Labor-Type Orientations

Environmental PreferencesEnvironmental Preferences::

Who You Are Working WithWho You Are Working With

Where You Are WorkingWhere You Are Working

Activity PreferencesActivity Preferences::

Activities Dealing With Things or ObjectsActivities Dealing With Things or Objects

Activities Resulting In The Prestige/Esteem of OthersActivities Resulting In The Prestige/Esteem of Others

TolerancesTolerances::

StressStress

Lack Of Control Over Work ActivitiesLack Of Control Over Work Activities

P. Breer and E. Locke (1965)P. Breer and E. Locke (1965)

● Beliefs, preferences, and tolerances developed in one task situation will generalize to all others.

● Preferences and tolerances generated in the work place are of predominant importance for generalization because of the very salient role which work has in the lives of most people.

M. Kohn and C. Schooler (1969, 1983)M. Kohn and C. Schooler (1969, 1983)

● Occupational conditions affect the worldview and personalities of workers

● Traits cultivated at the workplace are generalized to other spheres of behavior, for example, interactions with children

● The relationship between conditions of work and personality is not solely the result of the selective entry of actors into appropriate jobs. The causal ordering is reciprocal, with the conditions and requirements of jobs both influencing and being influence by personality.

G. Becker (1976, 1981)G. Becker (1976, 1981)

● People maximize the efficiency of a system by assigning tasks to people according to the resources they bring to the system.

● Women have a comparative advantage in domestic labor because they have been socialized to have the requisite resources (i.e., values orientation, task orientation) for domestic work..

Research QuestionsIf preferences and tolerances developed in one task situation

generalize to others ANDOccupational conditions affect the preferences and tolerances

of workers ANDPeople maximize the efficiency of a [household] system by assigning tasks to people according to the resources they bring to the system . . .

Are Men More Likely To Do Housework Are Men More Likely To Do Housework If Their Workplace Labor Has: If Their Workplace Labor Has:

High LevelsHigh Levels Of The Same Labor Orientations As Household Of The Same Labor Orientations As Household Labor?Labor?

Higher LevelsHigher Levels Of These Labor Orientations Than Their Of These Labor Orientations Than Their Wives’ Workplace Labor?Wives’ Workplace Labor?

AbsoluteAbsolute

RelativeRelativeOROR

“Housework remains primarily ‘women’s work’ despite substantial change in women’s employment patterns and in attitudes once thought to undergird the sexual division of labor.” Brines (1994)

“Both sexes agree that women are primarily responsible for grocery shopping, cooking, and cleaning the house.” Schooler et al (1984)

“Most women experience family tasks as . . . essential work done for people they love; most women usually enjoy ministering to the needs of their loved ones and keeping the family going . . .” Thompson and Walker (1989)

“ . . . he would sometimes derive pleasure from cleaning the bathroom or picking up a sock if he looked at it as an act of caring for his family.” Coltrane (1989)

“The family work most women do is unrelenting, repetitive, and routine. The family work most men do is infrequent, irregular, and non-routine.” Thompson and Walker (1989)

“Men avoid [housework] because they are not accustomed to doing monotonous repetitive work . . .” Ahlander and Bahr (1995)

Routine &Routine &RepetitiveRepetitive

Characteristics of Female-Typical Household Labor

ServiceServiceOrientationOrientation

High % OfHigh % OfWomen Women Doing ItDoing It

Meal Preparation ● Shopping ● Cleaning ● Laundry

Characteristics of Female-Typical Household Labor

“Most women experience family tasks as . . . essential work done for people they love; most women usually enjoy ministering to the needs of their loved ones and keeping the family going . . .” Thompson and Walker (1989)

“ . . . he would sometimes derive pleasure from cleaning the bathroom or picking up a sock if he looked at it as an act of caring for his family.” Coltrane (1989)

ServiceServiceOrientationOrientation

“The family work most women do is unrelenting, repetitive, and routine. The family work most men do is infrequent, irregular, and non-routine.” Thompson and Walker (1989)

“Men avoid [housework] because they are not accustomed to doing monotonous repetitive work . . .” Ahlander and Bahr (1995)

Routine &Routine &RepetitiveRepetitive

“Housework remains primarily ‘women’s work’ despite substantial change in women’s employment patterns and in attitudes once thought to undergird the sexual division of labor.” Brines (1994)

“Both sexes agree that women are primarily responsible for grocery shopping, cooking, and cleaning the house.” Schooler et al (1984)

High % OfHigh % OfWomen Women Doing ItDoing It

Insurance UnderwritersProofreaders

Tailors

ActorsRailroad Conductors

Tour Guides

TeachersClergy

Physicians

Service OrientedService OrientedJobsJobs

CarpentersArchitects

Pilots

BakersComputer Programmers

Financial Managers

SecretariesNurses

Laundry Machn. Operator

Female-TypicalFemale-TypicalJobsJobs

Nuclear EngineersOptometrists

Actuaries

DancersLocksmiths

Classified Ads Clerks

Garbage CollectorsMeter Readers

Food Preparation Workers

Routine & RepetitiveRoutine & RepetitiveJobsJobs

Sample Jobs Which Rate High, Average, and Low On The Three Job Characteristics*

*Source: Dictionary of Occupational Titles, 1977

DataNational Survey of Families and Households (NSFH, 1987)

Nationally representative sample of 13,008 adults aged 19 and older. The survey contains 17,000 housing units drawn from 100 sampling areas in the United States. My analysis uses the male married respondents whose spouses filled out a secondary survey (n=2990).

Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT, 1977)

Data from the US Department of Labor (DOL) on 12,000 occupations. The DOL observers visited employment sites to observe workers and then interview them and their supervisors. Each occupation was then coded based on the requirements of each occupation.

What Is Included In Each Model?

INDEPENDENT VARIABLES (Source: DOT)

PERCENT FEMALE (Absolute and Relative)PERCENT FEMALE (Absolute and Relative): Job requires a preference for/tolerance for working with a high percentage of women in work, presumably, seen as female-typical.

SERVICE ORIENTATION (Absolute and Relative)SERVICE ORIENTATION (Absolute and Relative): Job requires a preference for/tolerance for working for the presumed good of people

ROUTINE OR REPETITIVE WORK (Absolute and Relative)ROUTINE OR REPETITIVE WORK (Absolute and Relative): Job requires a preference for/tolerance for activities of a concrete, routine, or organized nature

DEPENDENT VARIABLE (Source: NSFH)

PROPORTION OF TOTAL FEMALE-TYPICAL HOUSEWORK DONE BY MALE PROPORTION OF TOTAL FEMALE-TYPICAL HOUSEWORK DONE BY MALE RESPONDENTS: Meal Preparation, Laundry, Housecleaning, and ShoppingRESPONDENTS: Meal Preparation, Laundry, Housecleaning, and Shopping

What Is Included In Each Model?

Control Variables (Source: NSFH)Age, father’s education, mother’s education, race, religiosity, enrolled in school, years of education, current employment status, military background, income (logged), living in a home, interracial relationship, length of current relationship, age at start of current relationship, previously married, previously cohabitated, number of kids, percent children under 5yo, teen girls in household, and physical disability

Theoretical Control Variables (Source: NSFH)RELATIVE RESOURCES: Income, education, age, job status, loss if divorceTIME: Number of hours worked by each partner, “normal” 8-5 work schedule with weekends offGENDER IDEOLOGY: Traditional attitudes of each partner

Other Job Characteristic Control Variables (Source: DOT)PHYSICAL FACTOR: Job has high physical demands (e.g., talking, seeing, stooping)COGNITIVE FACTOR: Job requires many cognitive skills (e.g., math aptitude) or trainingSOCIAL FACTOR: Job requires ability to handle complex relationships with people

Percent Female 0.002Service Orientation 0.044Repetitive & Routine Work 0.018

Physical Factor -0.095**Cognitive Factor 0.031Social Factor -0.058

R contributes more income -0.028R only with collegea -0.066***R is older than spouseb 0.022R’s job has higher status -0.030Divorce would worse for spouse 0.003Number of hours S is working 0.061**Number of hours R is working -0.075***Spouse home btwn 3p and 12a -0.058***His traditional attitudes -0.117***Spouse's traditional attitudes -0.039*

Regression Results of Models of ABSOLUTEABSOLUTE Job Characteristics and Proportion of Female-Typical Housework Done By Married Men

Relative Resources

Time Availability

Gender Ideology

*** p<.001 ** p<.01 * p<.05 a Omitted both with college b Omitted both are same age R2 = 0.14

All coefficients are standardized.

Job Type Controls

Percent Female 0.055**Service Orientation 0.047*Repetitive & Routine Work 0.048*

Physical Factor -0.057**Cognitive Factor 0.032Social Factor -0.029

R contributes more income -0.028R only with collegea -0.072**R is older than spouseb 0.021R’s job has higher status -0.021Divorce would worse for spouse 0.003Number of hours S is working 0.060**Number of hours R is working -0.076***Spouse home btwn 3p and 12a -0.059***His traditional attitudes -0.118***Spouse's traditional attitudes -0.041*

Regression Results of Models of RELATIVERELATIVE Job Characteristics and Proportion of Female-Typical Housework Done By Married Men

Relative Resources

Time Availability

Gender Ideology

Job Type Controls

*** p<.001 ** p<.01 * p<.05 a Omitted both with college b Omitted both are same age R2 = 0.15

All coefficients are standardized.

30%

31%

32%

33%

34%

35%

36%

37%

38%

Upholsterer Bartender PhoneRepairman

Average Man Social Worker Nurse Dentist

Proportion Female-Typical Housework Done When Wife Is a SecretaryRelative Job CharacteristicRelative Job Characteristic: : Work Done For Presumed Good Of OthersWork Done For Presumed Good Of Others

30%

31%

32%

33%

34%

35%

36%

37%

38%

Civil Engineer PhysicalTherapist

Real EstateAgent

Average Man Truck Driver LaundryOperator

Food PrepWorker

Proportion Female-Typical Housework Done When Wife Is a SecretaryRelative Job CharacteristicRelative Job Characteristic: : Work is Routine and RepetitiveWork is Routine and Repetitive

30%

31%

32%

33%

34%

35%

36%

37%

38%

Carpenter Geologist Electrician Average Man Hotel Clerk Financial &Billing Clerk

Model

Proportion Female-Typical Housework Done When Wife Is a TeacherRelative Job CharacteristicRelative Job Characteristic: : Job Is Higher In % FemaleJob Is Higher In % Female

Conclusions

● Relative resources, time availability, and gender ideology are all indicators of men’s household labor allocation.

● Men’s absolute holdings of particular job characteristics is not an indicator of their household labor allocation.

● Men’s holdings of particular job characteristics—relative to their spouse’s holdings of those characteristics—is a significant indicator of the men’s household labor allocation.