Stress and performance standards: A dynamic approach to time spent in housework

Daily log. collected over a 10-week period from a small, nonrepresentative sample of young, childless married couples were examined. Housework was con ceptualized as a daily decision predicated upon personal standards, social rhythms, and stress variables that shape the perception of need for housewo rk,. Findings indicate that home-based stress, stress from outside the home , and standards are independent, additive predictors of housework time. In addition, stress and standards interact in ways suggesting that stress modi fies the meaning of performance. High home-based stress and low imported st ress lead to more critical evaluations of ones' own performance and more mo nitoring of one's spouse's contributions. Husbands do more when wives do mo re, but only when wives import little stress from outside the home or perce ive high demand for housework.. Results are interpreted in terms of pattern s of meaning and obligation.