Maltese women are still generally lumped with all the household chores, according to a survey which confirms that gender equality at home remains a far cry.
Women still do, almost exclusively, all the cooking, ironing, laundry and buy clothes, as men generally take responsibility of repair and maintenance.
However, the study shows that children of working mothers are more aware of the need to share household chores and are in favour of women continuing working after having children.
The study, Gender Stereotypes And Education carried out by Suzanne Gatt and Kevin Gatt on behalf of the National Commission for the Promotion of Equality, probed 500 primary and secondary students. The findings were unveiled during a conference yesterday.
NCPE executive director Sina Bugeja said the study shows that despite the social changes, children are still exposed to traditional roles at home.
A total of 44 per cent of schoolchildren said it was only their mother who cooked at home, with another 39 per cent saying it was their mother "sometimes" assisted by their fathers. Less than one per cent of the men assumed the chef's role exclusively and just 1.4 per cent of men bother to wash the floor.
No fewer than 80 per cent of women wash the clothes at home, with just 0.6 per cent of fathers doing so. The only shared responsibility between parents circles is on the family budget.
Forty one per cent said it is only the mother who does the household shopping with a mere two per cent saying the father assumed this role exclusively.
Nearly half of all schoolchildren claimed it was their mother who called the doctor when they were ill.
On a positive note, 44 per cent of respondents said the entire family went out together for entertainment purposes, with 35 per cent going out with friends.
Fifty six per cent of children said they believed the mother should be present at home when they finish school, and just over half said it was acceptable for their fathers to travel for work purposes.
There were some interesting statistics where working mothers were involved.
While 54 per cent of housewives always cook alone at home, the figure drops to 35 per cent in the case of working mothers. Likewise, 75 per cent of stay-at-home mothers always washed the floor, compared to 53 per cent of those who work.
Though housewives in general do more housework, working mothers are more involved in taking their children to extra-curricular activities than housewives.
In an interesting statistic, a third of housewives allowed their schoolchildren to go to private lessons on their own, contrary to a higher number of working mothers.
Secondary school students agreed in general that there should be a discussion on the distribution of chores.
Respondents in general favoured statements that indicate a woman's right to a career and that there should be a division of household chores. Nearly three quarters feel the father should help in the cleaning of the house.
Overall, girls hold stronger attitudes towards having a career and feel they have a greater role in society than just being mothers.
In the study, whereas primary children held strong traditional ideas, secondary level students tended to be more open to change.
Speaking to The Times, Ms Bugeja said the study finally gives the authorities a clearer picture of the situation on the ground.
"I'm not surprised with the findings. Nowadays, we still hear men saying they do give a helping hand to their wives at home, assuming that it's the woman's job," she said.
Society still has to overcome certain misconceptions such as the claim that women who stay at home are closer to their children, when in reality working mothers make an extra effort to be close to their family. Ms Bugeja said the authorities also need to look into the fact that more males fall by the education wayside as they were growing up, meaning that women outnumber males once they reach university age.
"Change will of course take time, and we still have a lot of structures resisting change. We need to look at issues like the school set up and the Church's contribution in this debate. We seem to be more comfortable to continue in the traditional way at the expense of stifling the advancement of society," she added.