During this PhD project, you will study why in some families gender inequality in the division of labour persists generation after generation.

Your job
Why is there still gender inequality in the division of labour? Is it reproduced generation after generation? Although women’s labour force participation has increased over the past decades, women still work fewer hours and earn less income than men. Adding to this gender inequality, is the persistent gendered division of housework and childcare, with women doing the lion’s share of unpaid work.

An important explanation for the persistence of this inequality is that gendered patterns in paid and unpaid work are transmitted from one generation to the next. This PhD project aims to better understand the role of intergenerational transmission for gender inequality by:

1. studying similarity in paid work and unpaid work for fathers and mothers, sons and daughters;
2. studying sources of variation in intergenerational transmission; and
3. testing theoretical explanations for these moderating effects.

The project will use large scale existing data and survey data that will be collected for the purpose of this project.

The PhD project will be carried out at the department of Sociology and consists of the following tasks and responsibilities:

• conducting the research (literature review, analysing data, reporting results) resulting in international scientific publications and a dissertation;
• collecting survey data on the parental division of labour as an addition to the LISS-panel;
• presenting at national and international conferences;
• active participation in activities of the department;
• teaching (max. 10% of your time).

We are looking for an enthusiastic candidate, who

• has (almost) finished a (Research) Master programme in Sociology, Interdisciplinary Social Science, or a comparable field;
• has a strong interest in the study of gender inequalities and/or families;
• has experience with quantitative research and advanced statistical methods;
• enjoys doing research and reporting the results in scientific articles;
• wants to share scientific knowledge with the general public;
• has good social skills and is creative;
• has good writing and presentation skills in English (and preferably also Dutch).

We offer:

• a position for one year, with an extension to a total of four years upon successful assessment;
• a full-time gross salary between €2,770 in the first year and €3,539 in the fourth year of employment in scale P of the Collective Labour Agreement Dutch Universities (CAO);
• 8% holiday bonus and 8.3% end-of-year bonus;
• a pension scheme, partially paid parental leave, and flexible employment conditions based on the CAO.

In addition to the employment conditions from the CAO for Dutch Universities, Utrecht University has a number of its own arrangements. These include agreements on professional development, leave arrangements, sports and cultural schemes and you get discounts on software and other IT products. We also give you the opportunity to expand your terms of employment through the Employment Conditions Selection Model. This is how we encourage you to grow. For more information, please visit working at Utrecht University.

Universiteit Utrecht

A better future for everyone. This ambition motivates our scientists in executing their leading research and inspiring teaching. At Utrecht University, the various disciplines collaborate intensively towards major strategic themes. Our focus is on Dynamics of Youth, Institutions for Open Societies, Life Sciences and Pathways to Sustainability. Shaping science, sharing tomorrow.

The Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences is one of the leading faculties in Europe providing research and academic teaching in cultural anthropology, educational sciences, interdisciplinary social science, pedagogical sciences, psychology, and sociology. Almost 7,000 students are enrolled in a broad range of undergraduate and graduate programmes. The Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences has some 1,100 faculty and staff members, all providing their individual contribution to the training and education of young talent and to the research into and finding solutions for scientific and societal issues. The faculty is located at Utrecht Science Park near the historical city centre of Utrecht.

You will work at the department of Sociology in a well-integrated team of researchers. The supervisory team will consist of Professor Ineke Maas and Professor Anne-Rigt Poortman. We will closely cooperate with you and support your research activities. You will gain some experience with teaching and you will receive PhD training within the Interuniversity Center for Social Science Theory and Methodology (ICS) Graduate School.