Evolved equity but inequity in the household? Reviewing evolutionary accounts of Fairness

Gendered division of household labour is marked by its pervasive inequality, in that women routinely do more housework across the world. But still, most women continue to find it fair, even if they are systematically contributing more. How can evolutionary accounts of fairness explain that fact? We review three major accounts focusing on their psychological claims, discussing what evidence in support of their account and how well they can explain perceptions of fairness about gendered division of household labour. These are three distinct accounts which describe fairness judgements a) arising from the following of local social norms (Henrich and colleagues), b) a sense of equity which evolved in a partner choice ecology (André, Baumard and colleagues) and c) as a sense of egalitarianism, which evolved in response to human coordination problems (Binmore). We find that none of these accounts are fully compatible with observations of gender inequalities in households, though each contain important insights, which can be integrated into a more comprehensive theory. We end our review by providing an outline of what such a comprehensive theory might look like and provide a tool for researchers to enable seamless exploration of multiple factors underlying fairness judgements.