A new study says that newlyweds need to help each other in household chores to maintain t heir wedded bliss.
Researchers at the University of Illinois state that the way the couples discuss the division of household work in the first two years of marriage is important. They explain that once the routine is established it persists over time and can lead to increased conflict resulting in decreased happiness in the marriage for years to come.
For the study, the researchers analyzed the beliefs, behaviors, and marital quality of 220 heterosexual newlywed couples. They found that dividing household labor influenced the marital satisfaction of wives but not that of husbands. When wives valued equal sharing of housework, they were significantly happier if their husband shared those beliefs.
The researchers said that equations change after children come, hence the couple needs to chalk out how the sharing in real life. "Newlyweds need to thoughtfully plan how they can make their expectations about sharing chores work out in real life, especially if the new spouses strongly value gender equality in household labor. This issue will only matter more after children start arriving," said Brian G. Ogolsky, a U of I professor of human development and family studies in a press release.
"These results were interesting because usually marital satisfaction is studied in only one spouse. Here we were able to see what happens when there's a discrepancy in spouses' attitudes on this issue. If a woman believes that household chores should be divided equally, what happens if they adopt a traditional approach to the matter? The most satisfied couples have similar expectations and follow through on them," he said.
Husbands are not affected by this equal division of labor. "For husbands, sharing household tasks isn't as directly related to their satisfaction. Either they don't perceive that there is a discrepancy or they have bought into the idea that the second shift belongs to women," he said.
The research team said that the important thing is to enter a marriage with a clear understanding of where your partner stands on these issues. "Such an understanding helps couples avoid becoming disillusioned as the marriage goes on," Ogolsky said.
