The division of household labor by lesbian families residing in the northeast of England

Abstract

The focus of this article is to explore the household division of labor and childcare patterns in lesbian households and how this is influenced by economics, social class, and family background. In doing this, data is drawn from 10 sets of qualitative interviews with lesbian families located in the city of Newcastle upon Tyne in the northeast of England. The research findings presented in this artilce discuss a number of themes and areas of concern in relation to the undertaking of household chores. These include gender-negotiation and motherhood; childcare continuation, social class and class ambivalence, and the impact of family background/relatives and external community expectations. In concluding, the article reveals the complex intersections of parenthood, gender, sexuality, geography, social class, and heteronormative expectations in informing and structuring household labor and childcare patterns within the same-sex family unit.

Keywords:

• Lesbian families
• household labor
• childcare
• sexuality
• gender
• social class

Acknowledgments

The research on which this article is based was funded under the Sociology Masters project by the EU-Saturn, a European Commission funding agency under the European Union for the period August, 2013 until September, 2014. This article was presented at the British Sociological Association 2018 Annual Conference at Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne under the paper sessions of Family and Relationships.