Most Husbands Think Chores, Child Rearing Should Be Shared

July 23, 2018

Tokyo- The share of husbands saying they should share household chores and child rearing with their wives each topped 80 pct, twice the levels of 30 years ago, a survey has shown.

But there is a gap between ideal and reality, according to the survey by the Hakuhodo Institute of Life and Living, which also showed wives do most housework.

The institute has conducted such polls every 10 years since 1988. The most recent one, taken between February and March this year, covered 630 married couples of salaried workers living in the Tokyo metropolitan area.

According to the latest survey, 81.7 pct of the responding men answered that husbands should split household chores with their wives, up from 38 pct in the 1988 survey.

The share of men who said husbands should share child-rearing duties shot up to 88.9 pct from 45.8 pct.

Both figures marked record highs.

On the other hand, wives who said that their husbands often prepare meals stood at 13.7 pct and those who answered that their husbands often do the laundry came to 11.1 pct.

Although both numbers were record highs, the results indicated a gap between what husbands think they should do at home and what are actually done.

More than half of both wives and husbands felt that responsibilities should ideally be divided equally or undertaken by whomever is available.

The traditional role allotment, however, stood out among couples in reality, with 70 pct of the respondents answering that wives mainly handle responsibilities at home and husbands took care of matters outside. Jiji Press