How household chores could lead to better sex

Research showed couples who shared chores made love more often. Photo / iStock

Mopping the floor... scrubbing the loo... cleaning out the fridge. All of these chores are far from pleasant and not in the least sexy.

However, it seems if the woman in your life spots you doing them, she might suddenly find you irresistibly attractive.

A study claims that couples where the man does his fair share of the housework are likely to have more sex.

Researchers say that being in a relationship that a woman sees is equal makes her feel content. And a woman who is happier in a relationship is more likely to be in a happy, loving frame of mind in the bedroom.

The report claims to overturn similar studies that have suggested an opposite point of view - that couples who have a more 'traditional' approach to housework have better sex more often.

But researchers said these findings were based on old data that was gathered in the late 80s and early 90s. Since then social attitudes among women have dramatically changed - with the result that modern women now demand that their man pulls his weight.

Cornell University professor Sharon Sassler said that between 1975 and 2012, the proportion of women who disagreed with the statement "it is much better for everyone involved if the man is the achiever outside the home and the woman takes care of the home and family" rose from 47 per cent to 78 per cent. Even among men, in 2012, 71 per cent disagreed with the statement.

She said: "Contemporary couples who adhere to a more egalitarian division of labour are the only couples who have experienced an increase in sexual frequency compared to their counterparts of the past.

"Other groups - including those where the woman does the bulk of the housework - have experienced declines in sexual frequency. This finding is particularly notable given reports indicating that sexual frequency has generally declined worldwide over the past few decades."

Professor Sassler said more recent surveys have overturned the idea of traditional roles where a man is the breadwinner and the woman is the home maker.

She said that according to the data she analysed from 2006 couples who reported sharing housework fairly equally, with the man doing more than a third and up to 65 per cent of the housework, reported having sex significantly more often than did couples where the woman (or the man) did 65 per cent or more of the housework.

She said that while the sexual satisfaction of couples with traditional roles, compared to more equal partnerships was broadly the same, couples who shared chores made love more often. When it came to child care, couples that split this job equally reported having more sex of a better quality.

Explaining the finding, she said that couples report having more and better quality sex when they are satisfied with their relationships. Relationship quality and stability is generally highest when couples split the household labour in a way they see as fair, she said.

"It is therefore not surprising that couples with more egalitarian divisions of routine housework report being more satisfied with sexual intimacy today than they did 20 years ago. Sharing housework is now perceived as a sexual turn-on."

Commenting on the study, historian Stephanie Coontz said; "Love used to be seen as the attraction of opposites, and each partner in a marriage specialised in a unique set of skills, resources, and emotions that, it was believed, the other gender lacked.

"Today, love is based on shared interests, activities, and emotions. Where difference was once the basis of desire, equality is increasingly becoming erotic."