The Gendered Division of Labour in Parenthood: Impacts on Women’s Mental Health
The Gendered Division of Labour in Parenthood: Impacts on Women’s Mental Health
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Issue Date
2024-11-18
Authors
Wilkinson, Julia
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
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Abstract
This capstone takes an in-depth look at the socio-cultural, structural, and psychological factors contributing to the unequal division of domestic labour among dual-earner heterosexual couples throughout parenthood, and the associated negative mental health implications for women. A review of the current literature demonstrated that despite dual-earner couples becoming the norm in recent decades, significant gender discrepancies in the division of labour among heterosexual couples remains. Although men are more engaged in domestic life than ever before, women continue to shoulder the majority of unpaid work demands. Research has found that this gendered and unequal division of household and childcare responsibilities has detrimental effects on women’s mental health. Exploring the topic from a feminist framework, recommendations include enhancing visibility of gender discrepancies, promoting egalitarian ideals, reinforcing the value of women’s work, prioritizing self-care for mothers, and advocating for men taking parental leave.
Description
Keywords
division of domestic labour , unpaid labour , unpaid work , invisible labour , gender discrepancies , women's mental health
License
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States , openAccess