Final answer:
Option (b), While recent trends show that men are contributing more to household chores, women still do the majority of the work. The gender division of labor in housework is converging, but equality in sharing domestic responsibilities has not been fully achieved.
Step-by-step explanation:
Recent trends suggest that the division of household labor by gender is witnessing a slow convergence regarding the weekly hours spent on housework done by men and women. Historically, gender roles have particularly been distinct concerning housework, with women undertaking the bulk of this unpaid labor which includes household chores, child care, and other family responsibilities. In many cultures, housework is traditionally seen as a woman's duty, whereas men might view participating in these tasks as a sign of weakness or as undermining of their masculinity.
In contrast, where some cultures view domestic work strictly as women's domain, and within the economic realm where gender stratification is evident with women earning less than their male counterparts while also doing most of the unpaid work at home, the modern perspective in places like the United States is slowly shifting. Recent research and reports indicate that men are increasingly taking on more domestic responsibilities; however, the balance has yet to reach full equality. While women still do a larger proportion of household work, the gap is narrowing as societal norms evolve, and gender roles become more fluid.
Therefore, the most accurate response to the student's question regarding how household labor is divided by gender, considering both the traditional and evolving trends, would be that women, typically, still do the majority of the housework with men increasingly helping out, but not to the point where the labor is equally shared between men and women.