Is Your Male Friend Having Difficulty Finding a Life Partner?

Researchers at Oxford University have found that men who do more housework or take on more childcare responsibilities are more likely to be involved in co-habiting or marital relationships. The researchers surveyed men and women in 12  countries. A representative sample of 13,500 men and women, aged between 20-45 years old from each of the 12 countries was taken.The survey was carried out in 1994 and 2002 as part of the International Social Survey Program.

The survey was conducted with a questionnaire that was developed to arrive at a "egalitarian index" for these 12 countries. The survey included questions regarding gender, housework and childcare responsibilities. The top four countries based on this egalitarian index were Norway, Sweden, Great Britain and the United States. In contrast, Japan, Germany, and Austria were near the bottom, while Austrailia had the weakest score amongst the 12 countries studied.

The results of the study indicate that women are more likely to want to either live with or marry a man who shares in the housework and childcare duties. Women in less egalitarian countries were 20 to 50% less likely to be living with a man than those in the more egalitarian countries. Given that the majority of housework and childcare duties continues to fall on women even in egalitarian countries, it is no surprise that men view more egalitarian women as less attractive life partners since this means more work for them as compared to the status quo.

You can read more about this study here.

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