Elderly Couples and the Division of Household Tasks

Abstract

Most family research on “who does the housework” focuses upon couples with dependent children. This study analyses data from the Australian National University survey of elderly people living at home. Most retired couples manage without outside assistance and maintain very traditional gender roles. However, task responsibilities between couples shift with disability, and to a lesser extent with ageing. The wife’s prior workforce participation is associated with a more flexible division of household responsibility, and ethnicity with a lessflexible division. The ability of the husband or wife to take over tasks in the event of the incapacity or loss of a partner has important consequences for their quality of life and independence, and for community care policies. Show more