What If She Earns More? Gender Norms, Income Inequality, and the Division of Housework

29 Pages Posted: 1 Apr 2023

See all articles by Iga Magda

Iga Magda

Warsaw School of Economics (SGH)

Ewa Cukrowska‐Torzewska

University of Warsaw

Marta Palczyńska

Institute for Structural Research (IBS)

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.

Keywords: household income, income inequality, housework, gender norms

JEL Classification: D10, D13, D31, J12, J16, J22

Suggested Citation

Magda, Iga and Cukrowska‐Torzewska, Ewa and Palczyńska, Marta, What If She Earns More? Gender Norms, Income Inequality, and the Division of Housework. IZA Discussion Paper No. 16045, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4406593 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4406593

Iga Magda (Contact Author)

Warsaw School of Economics (SGH) ( email )

aleja Niepodleglosci 162
PL-Warsaw, 02-554
Poland

HOME PAGE: http://www.sgh.waw.pl/prywatne/im20431/kontakt/

Ewa Cukrowska‐Torzewska

University of Warsaw

Krakowskie Przedmiescie 26/28
Warszawa, Pl-00681
Poland

Marta Palczyńska

Institute for Structural Research (IBS) ( email )

Wiśniowa 40B/8, 02-520
Warsaw
Poland

Do you have a job opening that you would like to promote on SSRN?

Paper statistics

Downloads
67
Abstract Views
361
Rank
640,780
PlumX Metrics