Tag Archives: chapter 10

The Motherhood Penalty: We’re in the Midst of a ‘Mom-Cession’

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There has been a great deal of talk about how men are losing their jobs in the recent recession, but little about how mothers who work outside the home are affected by it.  This article describes how the cultural assumptions many employers hold about women in the workplace affects mothers looking for jobs especially.  Recent research showed that married women with children who had lost their jobs had a 31% lower chance of finding a new job than a father with children.

Men Earning Less than Wives Struggle

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Looking for proof of the effects of the gendered norms we’ve discussed about masculinity?  How about evidence showing that even when it means more money, freedom, and time with family, many men feel guilt and depression when they earn less than female partners?

A common characteristic many men experience with masculine socialization is the idea that their value comes from their professional successes and ability to provide financially.  This article is a great example that men’s choices are restricted in significant ways by norms that focus worthiness in such a narrow way.  These norms have effects on the men’s physical and emotional health, along with their relationships.

Thank You, Sheryl Sandberg

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Interesting blog from a stay-at-home Mom in response to Sheryl Sandberg’s Lean In.  She speaks powerfully of the joys of mothering, its importance in her life, and her conflicted feelings about leaving her career behind for a while.  While I can’t say that I agree that, as she states, “socializaton and forced gender roles have nothing” (emphasis mine) to do with the joy she experiencing in her children, this doesn’t take away from the depth or the authenticity of the feelings.  Just because we’re socialized in a particular way doesn’t make our joys and sorrows associated with that socialization less authentic.

I think this also points to the need to value choices to parent, work, or a combination of these equally, regardless of the sex of the parent.  All three roles are vitally important personally and at a societal level.

The True Cost of Leaning In

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Click here for an article that breaks down how much money a couple would need in order to afford for a woman to “lean in” to her career.  The author blithely concludes that if a couple is careful enough, they can save this money in advance, without appearing to recognize that her and her partner’s higher paying jobs allow them the opportunities to save that others don’t have, or that not everyone who wants to move ahead in their careers is interesting in having their children in daycare while they work long hours either.