Questioning the Retraditionalization Thesis: Gender Differences in Paid and Unpaid Work in Bulgaria (1970–2010)

This chapter explores the gendered dimensions of the transition from a centrally planned to a market economy in Bulgaria by systematically analyzing the problem of gender differences in paid and unpaid work. It aims to identify changes in the gendered patterns of work and time use that accompanied the significant socioeconomic and political transformations that occurred in Bulgaria between 1970 and 2010. The article’s central hypothesis questions the relevance of the retraditionalization thesis to the Bulgarian case. Research based on labor market statistics and data from five national representative time use surveys conducted between 1970 and 2010 shows that there have been complex changes in paid and unpaid work, but none follows a retraditionalization pattern.