NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - What do most wives want to change most about their homes? Their husbands.
So finds a new survey by advertising agency Leo Burnett, which recently asked 1,000 women in North America what they think about their homes and their roles within them.
The results suggest why ABC's "Desperate Housewives," a campy primetime soap opera about unhappy suburban women, is this season's No. 1 new television hit: a lot of viewers can relate.
Among the ad agency's findings:
-- 60 percent of women want to change their husbands more than anything else in their home -- a feat only an extreme makeover or divorce lawyer could pull off.
-- Women are becoming more dominant in the home and liken their role to that of a chief operating officer.
-- Society, most women say, still doesn't appreciate the homemaker role.
-- Nearly two-thirds of women think it's possible to juggle career and caretaking.
"Women relish the control they have over their home and the freedom they have within it to be creative," said Denise Fedewa, a Leo Burnett senior vice president.
The survey identified four at-home personalities.
The most common is the Martha Stewart, or "House Proud," woman who derives satisfaction from her jobs at home.
Next up and at the opposite end of the spectrum is the "Treading Water" woman. For her, home is just "another burden in their already overburdened lives." Think Roseanne Barr.
The third most common type is "Keep it Simple" woman. No-fuss and no-muss, she's the most practical of the bunch. She's also Debra Barone, wife of Ray on "Everybody Loves Raymond."
Finally, there's "Keeping up with the Jones'" woman. To her, home is a status symbol and perfection is paramount. Role model? Perhaps Annette Bening's neurotic character in "American Beauty." The good news, according to Leo Burnett: this type is still a small group. The bad news: it's growing.
One question the study does not answer: who's likely to dump her husband first.
|