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Gendered Dimensions of Unpaid Activities: An Empirical Insight into Rural Bangladesh Households

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  • Faisal Bin Islam

    (Department of Geography, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA)

  • Madhuri Sharma

    (Department of Geography, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA)

Abstract

Women in Bangladesh are generally perceived as caregivers, often confined within the households to perform various activities, whereas men are perceived as the providers. These complex gendered roles intersect with multiple factors such as household structure, marital status, religion, cultural beliefs, economic shocks, and livelihood opportunities. This study used the feminist political ecology framework to contextualize and analyze time allocated toward unpaid works, culturally accepted as female/gendered activities, and the nuanced power dynamics between men and women within the rural households of Bangladesh. We used the household survey data collected from the Bangladesh Integrated Household Survey of 2015 to create a multiple linear regression model that helps understand the impacts of economic, cultural, and environmental shocks on the total time allocated toward unpaid activities by women within the household. Results suggest women who experienced climate-change shocks such as crop losses due to disasters and non-climatic shocks such as dowry tend to allocate more time toward unpaid tasks. In contrast, women who own their businesses tend to give less time toward unpaid tasks. This study provides guidelines for necessary gender-sensitive national policies to address the United Nation’s goal of gender equity and sustainable development.

Suggested Citation

  • Faisal Bin Islam & Madhuri Sharma, 2021. "Gendered Dimensions of Unpaid Activities: An Empirical Insight into Rural Bangladesh Households," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-12, June.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:12:p:6670-:d:573451
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    5. Kabeer, Naila, 2020. "Women's Empowerment and Economic Development: A Feminist Critique of Storytelling Practices in "Randomista" Economics: a feminist critique of storytelling practices in “randomista” economics," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 104600, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
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    Cited by:

    1. Sylvain Dessy & Francesca Marchetta & Roland Pongou & Luca Tiberti, 2024. "Women’s Relative Earning Power and Fertility: Evidence from Climate Shocks in Rural Madagascar," Working Papers - Economics wp2024_14.rdf, Universita' degli Studi di Firenze, Dipartimento di Scienze per l'Economia e l'Impresa.
    2. Madhuri Sharma, 2023. "Poverty and Gender: Determinants of Female- and Male-Headed Households with Children in Poverty in the USA, 2019," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(9), pages 1-23, May.
    3. Madhuri Sharma, 2021. "Multiple Dimensions of Gender (Dis)Parity: A County-Scale Analysis of Occupational Attainment in the USA, 2019," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-17, August.

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