In this study, the author examined (1) role-relations of dual-earner couples in terms of mutual relations among three variables: role expectation, role conception, and role performance in housework, and (2) the relationship between wives' employment and the characteristics of their own actual role-relations.
The author interprets anticipated correlations among those three variables as “role discrepancy”. “Role discrepancy” indicates some kinds of gaps, which will be observed between two role-related variables. It will be experimentally induced that there are seven patterns of role-relations in combination of those three variables.
The samples for this analysis were 99 dual-earner couples with preschool children.
In dual-earner couples, almost all the housework was carried out by wives. Role-relations, however, are diversified among the couples. Three typical patterns were found: (1) husbands regard housework to be the wives' role, and wives by themselves carry out housework regardless of their own conception (pattern F), (2) both husbands and wives do not regard housework to be the wives' role, but wives actually carry out the housework (pattern C), (3) both husbands and wives regard housework to be the wives' role, and wives actually caπy out the housework (pattern A).
Secondly, it was found that the characteristics of wives' employment reflected on the differences of those three patterns. Wives in pattern F were found to have begun their working career after their marriages. Wives in pattern C were professional career women who began their careers before their marriages. Wives in pattern A were part-time workers who began their work after marriage.
Furthermore, it was found that wives' incomes affect the significant differences of those three patterns. In the case of wives with high income, role-relations tend to be close to pattern C. However,in the case of wives with low income, role-relations are more likely to be in pattern A which is a traditional one in Japan.
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