Gender Inequality in the Life Cycle: The Effect of Parenthood on the Division of Unpaid Work

The aim of this paper is to test whether younger generations are more egalitarian or whether their more gender-balanced behaviour is due to factors associated with the life cycle. Data used in the analysis are from the two editions of the Spanish Time Use Surveys carried out in 2002-2003 and 2009-2010. The unit of analysis is the couple, and we measure the degree of equality within the couple using differences between the spouses in the amount of time spent on unpaid work (housework and caregiving). We analyse differences at both moments for generations born between 1963 and 1982. We focus on the changes observed when there is a transition from 0 to 1 child and from 1 child to 2 children. Results confirm that there is a greater difference in the amount of time spent on unpaid work after the birth of a child. However, this pattern is not the same in the transition from 1 to 2 children, which may suggest that the second child has a smaller impact on couples’ division of unpaid work.