Women’s role in households has not changed much in Turkey, where men rarely contribute to the chores, if at all. The results of the "Family Structure Survey" announced on Friday by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) verify this fact and demonstrate that in most homes, only one person does all the chores.

According to the survey conducted in 2021, all housework except painting the house was generally undertaken by one member of each household, from laying the dinner table to washing dishes and even serving tea in the evenings, a favorite pastime of most families in Turkey. The survey shows that women are overwhelmingly tasked with child care, doing the laundry and cooking alone most.

Nevertheless, decisions are made "jointly" when it comes to having fun. The TurkStat survey shows household members make joint decisions on where and when to go on vacation, at a rate of 94.7%. Decisions are also jointly made by the husband, wife and/or other members of the household in picking the place to go for a weekend outing, from dining out to entertainment venues. Couples also decide together on visits to relatives, friends, etc. Men, however, decide alone more on issues like how to prioritize expenditures or on vacations. Women decide alone on other issues that invariably involve chores, like what to cook for lunch/dinner and shopping for children’s needs.

The survey also shows that families are not always together on weekdays and most families gather regularly over the weekends and over dinners.

Arranged marriages

The survey also sheds light on how the couples got married and what causes divorces. Arranged marriages constituted 46.1% of first marriages of citizens, while 10.7% of arranged marriages were the result of families marrying off their children without seeking the latter’s consent or opinion. Some 34.9% of marriages were the result of the individual's own decision and with their parent's approval. The rate of couples who eloped against the wishes of their families was 5.3%.

The arranged marriage rate was almost the same for men and women, but the proportion of women who married against their wishes and upon their parents’ pressure was higher than men who committed to marriages arranged by their parents without their consent.

The higher the educational level, the less the rate was of arranged marriages without the consent of the spouses, the survey indicated.

The majority of marriages were between the ages of 20 and 24 for those who were married for the first time. Women married at an earlier age compared to men. For instance, the number of women who got married before the age of 18 was 24.2%, while this rate was only 4.4% for men. Women and men interviewed for the survey overwhelmingly said that the appropriate first marriage age for women was between the ages of 25 and 29. Only 1.4% of marriages were preceded by prenuptial agreements, the survey shows.

The survey also sheds light on people who abstain from marriage, at least for some time. People at the age of 15 and over who did not plan to get married at least within the next three years said they prioritized their education. Both women and men cited continuing their education as the main reason for delaying marriage plans. Other reasons to postpone or abstain from marriage were insufficient income and the lack of job prospects.

Money, indeed, is figured as the main reason for marriage problems. Spouses mostly had problems regarding expenditures, while the main reason for disputes among married couples was the devotion of less time to each other, income-related problems, individual responsibilities and smoking habits.

As for divorces, the primary reason for divorce was an "irresponsible and careless attitude," according to divorced spouses. It was followed by cheating, inability to financially provide for the family and domestic violence. Irresponsible and careless attitudes also refer to fading love between the spouses over years. Another important reason for divorce, after an irresponsible and careless attitude, was parents interfering with their family matters. For women, cheating came second in divorce reasons, ahead of domestic violence.