According to a social survey promoted by Indesit as part of the #DoItTogether campaign, the housework is still mainly carried out by women. The survey, involving more than 7500 people between Italy, France, the United Kingdom and Russia, shows that there is still a stereotypical view of the housework that competes to man and woman, albeit with some differences between the different countries. In Italy, washing and cooking seem to remain fundamentally a housework for women, who (in 61% of the cases) are the only ones in the family to have these responsibilities. There are similar percentages in Russia (64%) and France (58%), while the United Kingdom, with 48%, is distinguished for a better balance. According to the survey, the men principally deal with the disposal of domestic waste (Russia 53%, Italy 51%, Great Britain 47%). France is an exception, where the women also deal with waste, with a percentage that reaches 59%.
The social survey also shows that the imbalance in the housework management is a cause of stress and frustration and negatively affects the family and the couple relationships. Indesit has asked the British psychologist Emma Kenny, an expert on family dynamics and well-known for her TV shows on the theme, some tips to overcome these situations and find balance. Firstly, according to Kenny, it is useful to overcome stiff subdivisions and stereotypes and, just like Indesit’s web series “Come ti cambio la famiglia”, it is important to exchange roles and responsibilities. To do this, it may be useful to set up shifts that, with weekly rotation, involve all members of the family in the various tasks. It is also important to do the housework together, thus transforming tedious tasks in sharing moments. Finally, the housework can also be an excellent way for educating the children, helping them develop their sense of responsibility, the self-esteem, and the respect for the other people.
“When we launched the #DoItTogether campaign this spring, pointing out that even today the women do the vast majority of housework, we aimed to start a debate that reveals how some stereotypes are strong and rooted and how the commitment to overcome them can help families find balance and harmony – said Marco Merolla, Marketing Director at Whirlpool Italia –. The people’s response was fantastic and supported us at all stages of the campaign, allowing us to bring the theme out of the “fence” of what is usually taken for granted. Through the Emma Kenny’s tips, as well as with our web series, we wanted to show how the change is really possible, reaffirming that Indesit has always been concretely alongside the families, helping them in their daily lives”. The Indesit #DoItTogether campaign won the first edition of the Equal Special Prize, award promoted by Adci (Art Directors Club Italiano), for the 2017 edition of the Adci Awards.
