| By: |
Martina Lauk (Institut für Volkswirtschaftslehre (Department of Economics), Technische Universität Darmstadt (Darmstadt University of Technology));
Susanne Meyer (Institut für Volkswirtschaftslehre (Department of Economics), Technische Universität Darmstadt (Darmstadt University of Technology)) |
| Abstract: |
The gender relationship, characterised to a high degree by the gender-specific
division of labour into paid work and housework, is in the process of change.
In Germany, however, housework continues to be considered a typically female
chore. The present study considers the empirical relevance of three
theoretical approaches to gender-specific time allocation from the economic
and social sciences. The various models are assessed using the Socioeconomic
Panel (SOEP) for the year 2000. The estimation results imply that no single
theory can be favoured as opposed to any other. Accordingly, prevalent
approaches to the explanation of household division of labour are at the same
time equally suited and unsuited to grasping the problem empirically. A
person's individual housework time is determined by both economic and
ideological characteristics. Following on from the evaluation of different
theories, an approach is evaluated which simultaneously takes individual work
time and paid work time into account. This integrative evaluation shows that
the economic rational choice model finds only limited application in the area
of private households, thus pointing to the necessity for an interdisciplinary
treatment of the subject. |
| Keywords: |
time allocation, household division of labour, SOEP data |
| JEL: |
J22 J16 |
| Date: |
2005–03 |
| URL: |
http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:tud:ddpiec:143&r=ltv |