Women still do more than men at home decades later, despite shifting norms: study

Carolyn Day Flowers, left, cooks dinner as her husband David Flowers does arts and crafts with their 4-year-old twins Catherine and William, and their au pair Bianca Schulze at home in Kensington, Calif. on Tuesday, March, 25, 2008.

A new study shows that time made little difference in the division of housework in long-term relationships.

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The study from the University of Alberta followed 520 Edmontonians over 30 years, to see how men and women's contributions to household chores changed over time in a heterosexual relationship.

"The results showed that, as most people likely expect, women did the bulk of the housework," said researcher Matt Johnson, a professor of family science at the university.

"There was no aspect of housework, from laundry to cleaning the kitchen, cooking meals, shopping, where men did most. It wasn't even close."

Johnson said evidence shows younger men are taking on more housework compared to previous generations, but that shifting cultural norms didn't appear to impact the share of housework in the long-term relationships studied.

"While we might think of relationships as constantly evolving and changing over time, most things are actually relatively stable," he said. "Once couples kind of sort out an arrangement that works for them, they stick with it."

Johnson said the study's findings on the stability of relationship dynamics are good news for couples who are happy and satisfied.

"If, on the flip side, if there's some points that aren't so great … it's not naturally going to get better," he added. "If you want changes in how things are working, whether it's the division of housework or other aspects of the relationship, it's going to take some effort and renegotiation.

"Change is possible, but it's also not inevitable in relationships."