Who brings home the bacon? How gender stereotypes straitjacket men and women into traditional relationships

Abstract

Despite the fact that nowadays more women pursue careers and obtain higher educational degrees, there are still few heterosexual relationships in which the woman earns more, is more highly educated or has a job with higher societal status than the man. In fact, a growing number of scientific studies shows that these non-traditional couples experience all kinds of negative relationship outcomes. How is this possible?

This dissertation shows that gender stereotypes form an intricate system in which couples who break with traditional gender role divisions experience several negative outcomes. People still expect men to be breadwinners and the women to prioritize the household and childcare. In two experimental studies in the Netherlands and the United States, we show that couples who break with these traditional gender role divisions are judged negatively by others outside the relationship. In a diary study, we show that women in non-traditional relationships who have internalized stereotypes sacrifice more leisure time and think about how to reduce their working hours to benefit their home situation. Women who have internalized stereotypes to a lesser extent do not do so, but they do feel guilty towards their partner for how they combine their work and private life. Finally, we show in a large cross-national survey that gender stereotypes on a national level also influence the experiences of non-traditional couples. Non-traditional couples experience much less negative relationship outcomes in countries with more gender equality and where stereotypes about heterosexual relationships are less traditional than couples in more traditional countries.