What is a man most afraid of at home?

It may well be the humble washing machine, followed by the microwave and oven.

A survey of 2,000 British adults by electronics giant Samsung has found that 75 per cent of men are confused when using domestic appliances, compared with 39 per cent of women.

The most daunting task for the guys? Operating a washing machine - with nearly two-thirds of the men admitting to being completely stumped when trying to work out its settings and laundry care symbols.

When it came to washing labels like "do not tumble dry" and "delicate wet clean", men scored worse than women on nine out of 10 questions.

The other most dreaded tasks for men are defrosting food in the microwave (26 per cent) and cleaning the oven (24 per cent).

About seven in 10 men (73 per cent) admitted to dodging some domestic tasks as they are unsure what to do, and about half (54 per cent) revealed they are afraid to confess their lack of knowledge to their partners.

About three-quarters of all surveyed felt that there is a gender distinction for domestic tasks.

For example, respondents listed the stereotypical men's jobs as car maintenance, do-it-yourself jobs, fixing broken equipment and electronics, mowing the lawn, and outdoor chores. The poll revealed that a woman would be more associated with doing the laundry, cleaning and dusting, ironing, cooking, and vacuuming.

However, the survey also found that men are still not too shabby when it comes to helping around the house. Men average 7.3 hours of domestic tasks a week, with women averaging 9.9 hours.

But there may be a reason why men are so spooked by some household chores - 60 per cent say they regularly have domestic disasters while doing simple chores.

Nearly half have turned a washing load to a different colour due to a stray item while washing white fabrics.

The survey is part of a marketing move for Samsung's home appliances. The campaign also involved installing some iconic Renaissance statues in central London, but with a twist.

Michelangelo's David is reimagined as Domestic David in a pair of boxers contemplating laundry symbols, while Rodin's The Thinker becomes The Clean Thinker mulling over the wash cycle.