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What if she earns more? Gender norms, income inequality, and the division of housework

Author

Listed:
  • Iga Magda

    (Institute for Structural Research, SGH Warsaw School of Economics, and IZA)

  • Ewa Cukrowska-Torzewska

    (Faculty of Economic Sciences, University of Warsaw)

  • Marta Palczyńska

    (Institute for Structural Research)

Abstract

Using data from “Generation and Gender Survey” for Poland, we study the relationship between women’s relative income within the household, as measured by the female share of total household income, and women’s involvement in housework. We find that households in which the woman contributes more to the total household income are more likely to share housework equally. We also find that individual gender norms matter both for women’s involvement in unpaid work at home and for the observed link between the female share of income and inequality between the partners in the division of housework. Women from less traditional households are found to be more likely to share housework equally. However, this negative relationship between the female share of household income and female involvement in housework is not observed among more traditional couples.

Suggested Citation

  • Iga Magda & Ewa Cukrowska-Torzewska & Marta Palczyńska, 2023. "What if she earns more? Gender norms, income inequality, and the division of housework," Working Papers 2023-10, Faculty of Economic Sciences, University of Warsaw.
    • Handle: RePEc:war:wpaper:2023-10
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    2. Agnese Sechi & Skerdilajda Zanaj & Gabriele Lombardi, 2024. "Mothers and students’mobility," DEM Discussion Paper Series 24-08, Department of Economics at the University of Luxembourg.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    household income; income inequality; housework; gender norms;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D10 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - General
    • D13 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Household Production and Intrahouse Allocation
    • D31 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Personal Income and Wealth Distribution
    • J12 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Marriage; Marital Dissolution; Family Structure
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply

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