Despite considerable interest in the causes and consequences of work-family conflict, and the frequent suggestion in fertility research that difficulty in balancing work and family is one of the factors leading to low fertility rates in several developed countries, little research uses longitudinal data to examine whether women who report…

Examined relationship between wife employment status and marital adjustment using 27 studies. Most comparisons showed no difference in adjustment between wife groups and between husband groups. Differences that did result tended to favor the non-employed groups. When control measures were introduced the basic finding of no difference between…

Examined demographic and occupational features associated with postpartum plans reported at childbirth and status 6 months later for 205 Canadian women. Women employed until birth were more likely to be primiparous than unemployed women. Parity, socioeconomic status, and part- versus full-time work status failed to discriminate between women's…

The purpose of this qualitative study was to better understand the experience of wage-earning women in the context of rural economic restructuring. An ecological and life course theoretical framework was used. Nine community leaders and 17 wage-earning women residing in a rural northern Michigan county participated in semistructured interviews,…

Describes long-term sociodemographic trends that have shaped American women's behaviors in three role sets: as workers, as wives and sexual partners, and as childbearers. Documents reactions to trends among conservative family policy spokespersons and among progressive spokespersons and looks at contrasting policy goals and objectives of…

Children from divorced families did not have more household or childcare responsibilities than other children, but they did assume a confidant role with their mothers more often. They also rated themselves lower in social competence. Maternal employment decreased the children's participation in athletic activities and involvement with friends.…

Investigated whether a 20-hour workshop would facilitate the decision making of 20 career women experiencing difficulty deciding whether to have children. Significant differences among participants' attitudes, feelings, and inclinations toward parenthood were not found from the pre- to postprogram measure; however, 42 percent of the women made a…

Examined time allotments to household, paid, and unpaid work for farm, rural nonfarm, and urban women. Findings from 2,100 two-parent, two-child families revealed no significant differences among groups in allocation of time to household work. Of three groups, farm women spent more time in unpaid work, and rural nonfarm women devoted most time to…

Documents the extent to which one-parent families tend to have social and economic characteristics that compare unfavorably with those of two-parent families. Lone fathers are shown to have a much more favorable profile than their female counterparts, but the latter show evidence of recent improvement. (Author/BL)

Reviews trends and research findings related to marriage and divorce, unwed parenthood, labor force participation of women, and life expectancy to assess their implications for family policy. Outlines number of policy and programmatic measures as ways of helping to bring about more equitable distribution of well-being among diverse groups of…

Studied time use by mothers in single- and two-parent families, with both employed and nonemployed mothers. Single, employed mothers have least amount of time to spend in most activities. Analysis of covariance and least square means were used to study and identify significant differences in household tasks, child care, volunteer time, personal…

Examined job and family correlates of family role strain for 51 employed Black women. Job autonomy and demands and family size significantly predicted strain. Number of hours worked per week related only to difficulty completing household chores. Nonmarried women reported no higher levels of strain than married ones. (WAS)

Role strain, feelings of deprivation at home, comparative deprivation in work, and involvement in feminine household tasks were linked to male depression. Women were depressed if they evaluated their financial situation negatively and perceived their husband as an inadequate provider. (Author)

Examines the impact of combined work/family responsibilities on single-parent employees. Results indicated that parent employees, but particularly single female parents, were at risk for high job-family role strain and reduced levels of well-being. In spite of increased strain, however, single parents exhibited high levels of job satisfaction and…

Investigated how female parents in dual-career families view their roles. Compared the effectiveness of two strategies for dealing with conflict. Subjects using a role redefinition strategy did not differ from subjects using a role expansion strategy in self-reports of role conflict and coping effectiveness. (Author)