Cultural factors and division of housework in Turkey

The purpose of this study is to analyze the effects of cultural factors on housework in Turkish families. More specifically, this study uses the 2008 Turkey Demographic Health Survey (TDHS) to investigate how gender ideology and religion affect the division of domestic labor in Turkey while controlling for structural factors such as time availability, resources, and other pertinent sociodemographic factors. In this study, housework serves as a dependent variable, which is gauged by two measures, namely, female-type and male-type housework. Religious variables and gender ideology serve as key independent variables. Results from a series of Ordinary Least Square regression analyses show positive associations between egalitarian ideology and women's participation in routine and residual housework. Moreover, the associations between religious variables and routine housework are positive, whereas the associations between religious variables and residual housework are negative. Interpretations and discussions of these results are rendered by considering the cultural and religious contexts of Turkey.