Women just not maid the way they used to be-Australia

Women just not maid the way they used to be

CAINE EDWARDS   |  February 2nd, 2011

Unlike many Generation Y women, Tamara Edwards is confident of her ability in the kitchen. Picture: BRAD FLEET

TAMARA Edwards is not like other girls her age - the 23-year-old student can cook a roast, hem a shirt, drive a manual car and make a lamington - if someone gave her a recipe.

A recent study has found that many Generation Y women are unable to carry out these "traditional" tasks.

And skills such as cooking a roast or ironing a shirt are on the endangered species list.

Ms Edwards is a psychology student on the Gold Coast working in the he Territory for her holidays. And she claims to have retained these "female" skills.

Have Gen Y women lost 'traditional' skills? - have your say 

"I wouldn't have a clue how to cook a lamington, but if you give the recipe to follow I wouldn't have a problem." she said.

YOUR SAY

"How out dated is this sort of study? It is the 21 centenary after all. Grow up - not only are we women yet again subjected to sexist images of women but also have to be subjected to put downs because we don't value domestic skills of cooking and ironing as important."
Darwin young woman

The study by McCrindle Research found that 51 per cent of women under 30 were able to manage a roast dinner, compared to 82 per cent of baby boomers.

Social researcher Mark McCrindle defends the statistics by saying that we live in a throw-away culture.

"Rather than repair something, we will buy a new one, even if it's just a matter of darning holes or sewing on buttons," he said.

"As such, many women have lost these skills."

Ms Edwards agrees with the research.

"I know girls who have gone out and bought a new pair of jeans because they don't want to put the dirty ones through the wash," she said.

"People are getting more career minded ... the cost of living is high and you can't (afford to) have one person at home sitting on the couch."

But there is one task that she believes that every member of the civilised world should have down pat.

"There is definitely a right way to put a toilet roll on the holder ... The paper rolls from the front, not from the back!"