The value of housewife occupation is likely to be underestimated because of its invisibility and myth. This study was performed to investigate social meaning of housewife occupation in the modern society using concept of psychological benefit and cost of full-time housewife. Subjectively even if housewife occupation was perceived as benefit in some aspects full-time housewife was not considered as favorable status but as costly one compared to employed housewife. The perceptions of benefit and cost of housewife occupation were different from some characteristics of housewife and related to the content of works. Finally the estimation of housewife occupation was more influenced by psychological variables rather than conditions and situations of housewife. these results suggested that psychological meaning of housewife occupation is important to understand issues related to the housewife.