THE INFLUENCE OF HOUSEHOLD TYPE ON GENDER DIFFERENCES IN WORK TRIP DISTANCE

Conflicting evidence exists in the literature on commuting about whether or not the greater household responsibilities of women lead to their widely observed shorter work trips compared to men. In light of changes in American household structures, this study reexamines the household responsibility hypothesis by focusing on household type (defined in terms of number of workers present in the home). Male and female work-trip distances are compared for Baltimore workers in single-worker households and for those in two-worker households. The findings support the household responsibility hypothesis by showing a larger and more significant sex disparity among respondents in two-worker households than among those in single-worker households even after controlling for other factors, including presence of children. These results, and the finding that married women have shorter work trips than married men, are in line with the general conclusions of some previous studies that the unequal division of labor within the household is partly responsible for the gender difference.