Although gender is slowly becoming less polarising and we recognise the damage caused by assuming stereotypes, it’s still a very real fact that women do most of the household tasks.
Research conducted in this very topic often results in one common denominator being found: in heterosexual households, women take the brunt of the household chores. One UK study showed women do an average of 16 chores per week, and men managing an average of 6.
This of course doesn’t count the working full-time hours, shopping for groceries and other necessities, or caring for children, if they have them. Who knows what the percentages would be then!
In honour of International Women’s Day, IKEA is shining a light on these issues, addressing gender inequality in the household with a new digital card game. The game, called FiftyFifty, can be accessed through the brand’s Instagram Stories highlights.
In a recent press release announcing the launch of the game, IKEA shared that the collaboration with relationship expert Jennie Miller “takes couples, housemates, friends and co-workers on a journey to explore the roles and dynamics in our homes in a positive way.”
The game is aesthetically pleasing – we wouldn’t expect any less from IKEA – but it is also quite confronting, asking blunt questions about how you feel about household chores. It’s designed to support a difficult conversation; like a deck of conversation cards all about taking responsibility with housework. There are questions like:
“Do you do any behind-the-scenes housework that goes unnoticed?” and “Would you rather… clean the toilet, or do the taxes?” forcing us to reexamine how gender and the ways we were brought up have an impact on how we behave on a daily basis.
IKEA notes that the issue of gender inequality around the house is a global one that has been drastically highlighted throughout the COVID-19 lockdown, where couples, friends and housemates were forced to cohabit 24/7.
Are you curious about where your household ranks? The results may surprise you, and at the very least, FiftyFifty is sure to spark some interesting conversation around gender roles, responsibilities and perhaps even give people some insight they’ve previously been missing.
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