I spotted this title of an article while browsing this afternoon:
Men Create More Housework for Women
I can visualize all women nodding their heads as they read this title. The article goes on to report the following:
“Having a husband creates an extra seven hours of housework each week for women, according to a new study. For men, tying the knot saves an hour of weekly chores. “It’s a well-known pattern,” said lead researcher Frank Stafford, an economist at University of Michigan’s Institute for Social Research. “Men tend to work more outside the home, while women take on more of the household labor.” He points out individual differences among households exist. But in general, marriage means more housework for women and less for men. “And the situation gets worse for women when they have children,” Stafford said.”
I think between my husband and our three cats they add a lot more than 7 hours a week. I can only imagine our house after being away for two weeks. I know my husband will do his best to pick up but we have huge differences with regards to what we consider clean. I attribute this to me having the better eyesight and noticing the details. Plus I grew up in a military household with mandatory cleaning details and spot checks. After 10 years I don’t want him to change and he embraces my neurotic cleaning tendencies. There is also the added bonus that my husband has been away at a guy’s weekend in West Virginia. Apparently there is a lot of mud. Do you think it would be asking too much if I requested he strip before entering the house and left everything in the garage?
Note to the husband: I am not complaining sweetie. I am simply observing.
Great article! Although I also think it’s a lot more than 7 hours
Okay…after reading this…I guess I’m gonna have to head over to My Frakkin Blog and tell my wife I’m sorry! Had no idea!
Before we got married I had my husband agree, willingly, that he would keep the bathroom clean and I would do the rest. I grew up with a Father and brother, I know what men do in bathrooms and I did NOT want to spend years cleaning THAT up.
Of course, he did not keep his promise. In the morning he would get the bathroom first then go to work. I would get up, clean the bathroom and then actually feel it wasn’t so bad and I could actually sit down and pee.
If I ever marry a second time I’m going to get a totally different agreement. Separate bathrooms! His can be in the garage or basement where no one has to ever see or smell it.
me too, Im a plain house band, my wife works in the office while i do household chore while blogging at home. Im the one who take good care of our son too. pls visit.hope you could comment too.
This seems to violate some physica law. What happened to the other 6 hrs?
I think the gaining of 7 hrs for women is because of a stricter definition of clean, and I am willing to bet that for the most part, that hr that men save comes from not doing the laundry any more. So women do more house work not because men are doing less (excluding the laundry of course) but because men have a much looser definition of clean and a much higher tolerance for dirty.
When you ask your husband to clean something, then have to go back and clean it again because he didn’t do it right and you are grumbling and cursing about the extra time spent, just remember you asked him to clean it, and you should have known better. (ignore the run-on, it is late and I should be asleep)
Asking him to strip just seems somewhat kinky…. Are you sure that’s not what you’re getting at.
Or… you could be like me and not clean at all. Darn it, those 7 hours are MINE!
Sandra: Yep
BobO: Saying thank you is a really nice thing to do. It is easy to take things for granted. I try to make sure I show my appreciation of my husband’s contributions as well.
Laura: My husband explained that their aim can be off at 5am. I just keep cleaning wipes on the back of the toilet.
Suplado: I think the article failed to completely address men’s roles. I know a number of men who clean more than their wives. Just not my husband.
Pilot: My husband and I addressed the differences in our opinion of clean the first year of marriage. We came to the conclusion we would never be on the same page. He does his best and if I get overwhelmed we call a cleaning company. Now we don’t argue about it.
Freelance: It would be kinky if I was at home. Unfortunately I am in another state until Thursday.
Jillian: I am learning to be a bit more relaxed about things. I have just been trained since infancy to clean everything the minute I notice something is off. Hard habit to break.
lol 7 hours my ass. That’s obviously some whacked out average. I don’t think it’s a good idea to ask your hubby to strip before he enters the house – you never know who’s watching. You don’t want some creepy perv getting the full show of your hubby do you? lol ok back to realistic conversations: I think the boyfriend and I would do well living together this time around. We didn’t do so well the last time, but he’s gotten a lot like me when it comes to cleaning since then! hehehe
Did you know that married women die younger than women who aren’t married?
Men &/or children = stress.
Death is the only escape, LOL.
That’s so…funny! I just did a similar post on my blog (0ne of them, forget which one lol) about my husband, kids and their messes.
I asked my reader’s if I should fire my maid (me). They thought I should.