Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.5673/sip.64.1.5
Gender Inequalities in Household Management: Mapping of Mental Labour as an Invisible Dimension of Social Reproduction
Ksenija Klasnić
; University of Zagreb, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Croatia
Anita Dremel
; Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Croatia
Mirjana Adamović
; Institute for Social Research in Zagreb, Croatia
Abstract
The research on gender inequalities in the private sphere have dominantly analysed physical
and emotional labour, while mental labour – although pervasive – has remained conceptually
and empirically underrepresented. Mental labour encompasses the managing processes
of anticipating needs, identifying possible solutions, making decisions, and monitoring their
implementation in the daily functioning of the household. Exisiting research have shown that
this type of work is strongly gender-marked, and mostly done by women. This can have negative
implications on their well-being, and the quality of partner relations, particularly in households
with two employed persons. The aim of the paper is to analyse the gender dimension of
mental labour in households in Croatia based on the first nationally representative research of
this topic. The quantitative data were collected in the end of 2022 on a sample of 1,000 persons
living with an intimate partner. The results point to a strong gender inequality in doing
mental labour: most activities are done by women, a smaller number of duties are typically reserved
for men, while certain segments of the work are divided relatively evenly. Furthermore,
significant gender differences were identified in the perception of egalitarity, with men more
often than women assessing the distribution of mental labour as equal. The findings contribute to the understanding of mental labour as a crucial, albeit insufficiently recognised, dimension
of unpaid work and social reproduction. They point to the need of its integration in the gender
inequality analyses, especially in the context of distribution of daily responsibility, well-being
and social power within the household, while suggesting that it is necessary to advocate for a
detachment from an essentially gendered perspective on the opposition between the private
and public sphere.
Keywords
household management; mental labour; invisible work; unpaid reproductive work; gender inequalities in private sphere
Hrčak ID:
351686
URI
Publication date:
25.8.2026.
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