“Being a role-model” is said to be one of the most important parts of parenting. So, if we live in an egalitarian relationship, where paid and unpaid work are shared in equal parts, will our children take over these habits?
A study on parent-child transmission of gender roles in Spain by researchers Marc Ajenjo Cosp and Joan García Román shows that indeed, if more egalitarian values are being communicated to the new generations, they will presumably reproduce this behaviour in the future. Still, the authors claim that one phenomenon that creates the most inequalities within the couple is the birth of a child, and this happens largely because of a lack of work-family balance policies and measures. They assume that in order to ensure our children are able to live a more egalitarian life, being a role-model is not enough. It must be accompanied by other factors that facilitate this equality.