Shocking discovery about domestic chores that every couple must read.

Ladies, are you sick and tired of doing all the laundry, dishes and housecleaning? Before you split those duties with your hubby, you better read this.

A Norwegian study has discovered that couples may be better off living in a ‘traditional’ household where the wife does all the housework if they want to stay together.

According to a report from the Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Science, the divorce rate among couples who shared household duties equally, was around 50% higher than those where the woman did most of the chores.

The Norwegian researchers studied how married and cohabiting men and women divided housework and childcare throughout various life stages. They analysed two separate studies involving nearly 20,000 men and women aged 18 to 79: the study of Life Course, Generation and Gender, and the study of the Norwegian Life Course, Ageing, and Generations. Participants respectively answered questions about the division of housework and childcare; their attitudes toward gender equality; as well as other variables like life stage and social class.

The results showed 65% of couples equally or near-equally divided childcare, but not housework: Women reported doing all or almost all of the work in 11% of couples and ‘somewhat more of the work’ in 60% of couples. About 25% of couples divided the work more equally, with younger couples, childless couples, and couples where the woman had a full-time job among those more likely to split domestic chores.

“The more a man does in the home, the higher the divorce rate,” said Thomas Hansen, co-author of the study entitled ‘Gender Equality At Home,’ according to AFP. 

While researchers found no or very little cause-and-effect, they believe that the observation could be due to ‘modern’ attitudes.

The researchers said sharing equal responsibility for domestic chores doesn't necessarily contribute to contentment, and that the lack of equality at home and quality of life was surprising. The four-year study revealed that relationships are more likely to end in tears if guys do equally the same amount or more than their wives.

“One would think that break-ups would occur more often in families with less equality at home, but our statistics show the opposite,” he said.

Compared to traditional couples who held a high value of marriage and a more traditional attitude towards divorce, modern couples are just that, both in the way they divide up the chores and in their perception of marriage as being less sacred, Hansen said, stressing it was all about values. 

“In these modern couples, women also have a high level of education and a well-paid job, which makes them less dependent on their spouse financially. They can manage much easier if they divorce.”

He argued that the correlation could be because couples are happier when they have clearly-defined roles in the relationship where people aren't stepping on each other's toes. 

“There could be less quarrels, since you can easily get into squabbles if both have the same roles and one has the feeling that the other is not pulling his or her own weight,” he added.

The general consensus is that these latest statistics come as no shock to anyone. 

One mum of three, who has been married for 25 years said, “If I got my husband to do most of the chores we would never have lasted this long,” she says. “I’ve been picking up his clothes off the floor every single day for 25 years.”