Daily Dose of Common Sense

A study found that men who do cooking, cleaning, and other household chores have the highest chances of finding someone to settle down with. Women around the world respond, “You betcha!”

Researchers found a direct connection between marriage and cohabitation rates in countries where views on the roles of men and women are more equal. In these areas, responsibilities for housework and child-rearing are considered a partnership, not just a woman’s duty.

The study found that women living in less egalitarian countries were between 20 and 50 per cent less likely to be living with a man than comparable women living in a more egalitarian country. For instance, the findings would predict that the average British woman was 8.5 percentage points more likely than a similar Australian woman to be in a live-in relationship.

The countries with the highest levels of male participation were Norway, Sweden, Great Britain and the United States (whoo!). At the bottom of the list were Japan, Germany, Austria, and Australia. What’s going on with the Aussies? Are they as old-fashioned as the statistics make it seem?

This study also had one other nugget of note: while egalitarian men fare better with the opposite sex, egalitarian women are seen as a handicap. Women want men who help out, but men want women who will take care of it all. Talk about a double standard.

Guys, here are some ideas to get you started:

• SavvyMiss.com has a great list of Basic Cooking Terms & Tips for the Cooking Inept
• You can’t go wrong with Betty Crocker Cooking Basics: Recipes and Tips to Cook with Confidence on Amazon.com
• Tips for men and housework can be found here at Men and Housework: We Can’t Clean What We Can’t See
• This one is probably for women, but it’s a book called The Lazy Husband: How to Get Men to Do More Parenting and Housework

Photo courtesy of Flickr: eyeliam