Young Adults Perception of Appropriateness of some Domestic/Home-Related Activities: Implications for Gender Role Acquisition

Abstract

The process of acquisition of appropriate gender role is both developmental and cultural. The study examined perception of appropriate gender role in the family and the actual participation in family work. The participants were 545 freshmen of a Federal university and a State University within Lagos, Nigeria. The participants ages ranges between 15 years to 32 years and mean age of 19.8years. 371 of the participants were of Yoruba origin, 112 are of Igbo origin and the remaining participants were from other ethnic groups. The home activity scale designed for the study was administered to assess their perception of appropriateness of 30 family works and the frequency of performing the task. The result shows that twelve of the family tasks are perceived as appropriate for women while only four are considered as male appropriate only. Thirteen tasks were perceived as appropriate for the two sexes. However, most of the tasks including those considered as appropriate for both sexes are performed frequently by women. The result shows that traditional gender role sill exists in the Nigerian society. It is important to note that most of the family works are performed by the women.

Gender & Behaviour, 10(2), December 2012