Occupational Sex Stratification, Marital Power, and Household Division of Labor: The Case of the U.S.A.

Abstract

This study focuses on the effect of occupational sex stratification and spouses' relative marital power as reflected in the household division of labor. Previous research in this area has been limited to household level determinants. We use a more comprehensive approach by considering the impact of gender stratification outside the household. Based on a national survey, we find that even though, on average, wives are performing two-thirds of the household labor, among dual-earner couples where wives are in gender-balanced occupations, those with greater marital power have a more equitable division of labor at home.