The next time your husband balks when it's his turn to unload the dishwasher, whip out this fantastic fun fact: A new study in the journal Psychological Science has found that dads who help out around the house are more likely to raise ambitious daughters.
Traditionally, household upkeep has been considered "women's work," and though society is moving away from that stereotype, women still spend more time on chores than men. The study also finds that even when dads publicly advocate gender equality, they're not getting through to their daughters if the brunt of the housework still falls to mom.
In other words, actions speak louder than words, and daughters are taking note. If mom does all the chores, they might only envision themselves in traditionally "female" roles, like childcare and domestic work, rather than aspire to learn about broader career paths.
"Despite our best efforts to create workplace equality, women remain severely under-represented in leadership and management positions," study author Alyssa Croft, a PhD Candidate in the University of British Columbia, told the Association for Psychological Science. "This study is important because it suggests that achieving gender equality at home may be one way to inspire young women to set their sights on careers from which they have traditionally been excluded."
So dads, keep picking up the broom. And your daughter might pick up a business school application (well, when she's old enough).
Read more about this study at the Association for Psychological Science.
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[via Science of Us
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