Association between husband's participation in household work and the onset of depressive symptoms in married women: A population-based longitudinal study in South Korea

Seong-Uk Baek, Yu-Min Lee, Jong-Uk Won and Jin-Ha Yoon

Social Science & Medicine, 2024, vol. 362, issue C

Abstract: An unequal distribution of household work by gender is prevalent. This study explored the association between husbands' participation in household work and the onset of depressive symptoms among married Korean women. A nationwide sample of 7024 married women was repeatedly followed up at 2-year intervals from 2014 to 2022 (20,343 observations). The daily household work hours of both the participants and their husbands were self-reported. Satisfaction with husbands' participation in household work was classified as satisfactory, neutral, or dissatisfactory. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the 10-item version of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression. A generalized estimating equation was employed to determine how household work participation was associated with the onset of depressive symptoms in married women at the 2-year follow-up. The risk ratios (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated. The mean daily hours spent on household work were 2.62 h for married women and 0.35 h for husbands. A 1-h increase in the husbands' daily time spent on household work was negatively associated with the risk of onset of depressive symptoms in married women (RR: 0.88, 95% CI: 0.80–0.98). Compared with individuals with neutral responses, those satisfied with their husband's household work had a lower risk of depressive symptom onset (RR: 0.82, 95% CI: 0.74–0.90), whereas dissatisfaction was linked to increased risk (RR: 1.15, 95% CI: 1.04–1.27). Husbands' participation in household work was associated with a reduced risk of depressive symptom onset among married women. Achieving gender equality in the division of household work is important for women's mental health.

Keywords: Depression; Gender equality; Gender roles; Mental health; Unpaid work; Domestic labor (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:socmed:v:362:y:2024:i:c:s0277953624008700

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DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2024.117416

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