Sharing house chores strengthens marriage

So you want to make a relationship work? Did you know that one good way to go about it is to divide up household chores fairly; it is based on the Swedish study published in the peer-reviewed journal PLoS One.

The researchers noted that if house chores aren't divided equally, it's women who endure the emotional strain and the equality dilemma goes ahead of who mandate the chore list, with women feeling they are not on the same footing with their opposite sex partner.

Sweden's Umea University scientists studied surveys from about education, home life, health, and work, filled out by 723 residents of a Swedish industrial town from 1981 to 2007.

It showed that age 21, both men and women stated approximately the same level of psychological distress, such as unease, impatience, and concentration problems. Thus far by age 42, that shifted, with women's level of distress increasing whereas the men's stayed the same.

The big reason for women's distress was the uneven division of domestic chores. However the most anxious women not only executed more household work but felt a greater sense of gender inequality in the relationship.

According to the researchers, if a woman felt on equal ground with her partner, the distress dissolute, even if they exert more weight around the house.

On the other hand, American psychologist Jill Weber said in an interview, "It's the feeling that the woman is not getting support from her partner. Inequality often translates as a lack of emotional support." — ARA