Does Household Work Matter Anymore? Comparisons of Household Production and the Distribution of Income in the United States in 1965-66 and 2003

Cathleen Zick, University of Utah
W. Keith Bryant, Cornell University
Sivithee Srisukhumbowornchai, University of Utah

In this paper, we examine how demographic and economic factors can help us understand trends in housework time and what they imply for trends in the distribution of income in the United States. Using time-diary data, we estimate how adults’ housework time influenced households’ real access to goods and services in both 1965-66 and 2003. Particular attention is given to assessing the impact of housework on economic inequality as measured by Lorenz Curves and Gini ratios. Based on these estimates, we decompose the changes over time that we observe into those attributable to (1) demographic shifts in marital status, ethnicity, and the presence or absence of children; and (2) economic shifts in the costs of market alternatives and the distribution of household money income. By using data from 1975 and 2003, we will be able to assess change over a period of time where the United States experienced considerable demographic change.