Couples who share housework 50 per cent likelier to divorce

The divorce rate among couples who shared housework equally was around 50 per cent higher than among those where the woman did most of the work, according to the study.

"What we've seen is that sharing equal responsibility for work in the home doesn't necessarily contribute to contentment," the Daily Mail quoted Thomas Hansen, co-author of the study, as saying.

The figures clearly show that "the more a man does in the home, the higher the divorce rate," he said.

According to Hansen, the reasons lay only partially with the chores themselves.

But the deeper reasons for the higher divorce rate, he suggested, came from the values of "modern" couples rather than the chores they shared.

"Modern couples are just that, both in the way they divide up the chores and in their perception of marriage" as being less sacred, Hansen said.

Modern women also have a high level of education and a well-paid job, which makes them less dependent on their spouse financially. This can also be a reason as they can manage much easier if they divorce, he said

The study noted that women who did most of the chores did so of their own volition and were found to be as "happy" as "modern" couples.