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Culture portability from origin to destination country: The gender division of domestic work among migrants in Italy

Author

Listed:
  • Elisa Brini

    (Universitetet i Oslo)

  • Anna Zamberlan

    (Università degli Studi di Trento)

  • Paolo Barbieri

    (Università degli Studi di Trento)

Abstract

Background: The relative importance of a cultural component in the gender division of unpaid labour is still debated. Objective: Drawing on the epidemiological approach to the study of culture, we investigate the cultural component of gender inequality by examining whether gender asymmetries in housework and childcare in families with a migrant background relate to gender equity in the country of origin. Methods: Through multilevel models based on microlevel data (Istat SCIF survey), we examine the extent to which the division of household labour between immigrant partners living in Italy relates to gender equity in their origin country, proxied by the Global Gender Gap Index. We further analyse the changing importance of gender equity in the country of origin at different lengths of stay in the destination country. Conclusions: Immigrants from more (less) gender-equal countries display greater (lower) equality in the division of routine housework and childcare activities. However, gender equity in the origin country loses its importance for couples living in the destination country for a longer time. These findings point to a significant contribution of culture of origin to gender inequality in the intra-couple division of unpaid labour. Yet nonnegligible differences exist between specific housework and childcare tasks and depending on the time spent in the hosting country. Contribution: Our study contributes to the literature on gender inequalities by providing new evidence on the relationship between culture of origin and the division of specific housework and childcare tasks in families with a migrant background.

Suggested Citation

  • Elisa Brini & Anna Zamberlan & Paolo Barbieri, 2022. "Culture portability from origin to destination country: The gender division of domestic work among migrants in Italy," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 47(20), pages 577-614.
    • Handle: RePEc:dem:demres:v:47:y:2022:i:20
    DOI: 10.4054/DemRes.2022.47.20
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    Cited by:

    1. Brini, Elisa & Scherer, Stefani & Vitali, Agnese, 2023. "Gender and beyond. Employment patterns during the Covid-19 pandemic in Italy," SocArXiv bkgfc, Center for Open Science.
    2. Elisa Brini & Stefani Scherer & Agnese Vitali, 2024. "Gender and Beyond: Employment Patterns during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Italy," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 43(3), pages 1-23, June.
    3. Joan Garcia-Roman & Ariane Ophir, 2024. "Housework time and task segregation: Revisiting gender inequality among parents in 15 European countries," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 50(19), pages 503-514.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    gender; culture; migration; epidemiology; housework; childcare;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J1 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics
    • Z0 - Other Special Topics - - General

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