ABSTRACT
The thesis titled „Influence of husbands? participation in household tasks on wives? employment? focused on the world of working mothers; the rigors and challenges they face everyday in order to fulfill their office and home obligations. As the numbers of employed mothers rise daily, in the face of economic difficulty; many of these wives experience role over- loads and stressful conditions which may affect their input at work, as well as their emotional and social well-being at home with family members. The ability to juggle both worlds by the wives and especially the support from their husbands may make a lot of difference in the life of the working mothers and wives. Five specific objectives were set among which were to identify factors motivating wives at work, to determine the difficulties posed to husbands by their performance of non-male traditional tasks in the home. Similarly, five research questions were answered and five hypotheses were tested. Descriptive and survey research design were used for the study. Six thousand, seven hundred and sixteen (6,716) subjects were the population for the study; while a sample of three hundred and thirty-seven (337) was selected using proportionate sampling technique. The instrument for data collection was a structured questionnaire which contained forty-five (45) items, which was designed on a four-point rating scale. Frequencies, percentages and mean were used to answer research questions. Pearson Product Moment Correlation (PPMC), Ordinary Least Square (OLS) regression model, and One- Way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) were the statistical tools used to test the hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. All the four hypotheses were rejected. The major findings of the study revealed that yearning for improvement of the employed wives? standard of living and family financial status were some of their motivating factor; age, occupational status and educational level affect husbands? direct participation in household tasks, husbands of employed wives were more involved in relatively male- inclined and less strenuous household tasks. Based on the findings, it is concluded that inadequate finances and self fulfillment were some motivators for employed wives at work. Vivid factors like type of occupation, position attained, fear of loosing respect as head of the family, personal schedules, fear of being called names by people restrained husbands of employed wives from participating effectively in household work. It is recommended that curriculum planners should stress and strategize the teaching of home economics subject in primary and secondary schools with full practical so that boys will get used to non- male tasks as they advance in age and academics. Governmental organizations (ministry for women affairs, social welfare and other related organizations) should advocate on behalf of employed wives? challenges and role- overload; and seek better ways to better their condition through their husbands? positive response in household tasks,