The Roles of Women and Men in the Family - Essay Example

The roles of women and men in the family have changed significantly over the past 50 years. Background Industrialization and modern advances has paved the way towards creating awareness in the society. This is depicted in terms of changes in the lifestyle of both men and women in the society. The major impact is portrayed in family and home life style as compared to the roles of both men and women over the past 50 years. Women are no longer considered as domestic labors and are given the status of equality in most of the modern societies. The article discuss the roles of both men and women in terms of domestic labour change, childcare, dual career family, symmetrical family, family development, Ann Oakley- Challenges evidence as being weak, studies of domestic role, government welfare policy. Introduction Women have travelled a long way in the past 50 years as compared to their male counterparts and embark changes in the lifestyles. In the present era, women are getting married later and giving birth later in life; they make up 50 percent of the work force and also have immensely shifted the roles in families. This move of women is in the direction of equality. Besides performing the role as a good worker in the job which was initially the men’s territory, women do perform multiple roles at the family front like maintaining quality of marital relationships, looking after the household activities (Bernades, 1997). The division of domestic labour has also witnessed changes in the patterns of time spent by men and women (Cheal, 2002). In support of this, there had been a reduction in gender inequality in the performance of some of the normatively feminine-associated tasks, a larger proportional increase in the time contributed to domestic work tasks by men from lower socio-economic strata, to a position of near equality with men from higher socio-economic positions, and a substantial increase in more `egalitarian couples (Chafe, 1991). Womens lives today are spectacularly unlike from those of their mothers and grandmothers. Women are developing an independent thinking and this is displayed in the nature of their choices that eventually prepares them for longer lives, significant labor force contribution with matrimony and children moreover, they know that they are contributing to their own economic well-being, by gaining more education, and proving themselves in well-paying employment (Chafe,1991). On the same memorandum, mens roles have also changed in the past 50 years. Men have more responsibilities in the home and in caring for the children - and the majority of men now level having free time with family this has become one of the most important factors in choosing their employment. In the present era men also like to give their quality contribution for the progress of children. A very dramatic change is observed in men and women in terms of how they look towards their lives also matter a lot in assigning the responsibilities. For child care initially only the women were held responsible as being mother they can look after their child better and with more care and understanding. Even today child is more close to the mother as compared to the father. With the advances in awareness and also in understanding and education women have gained respect from everyone and therefore they have attained superior position due to her presence of mind love and affectionate persona. This has paved the way for an understanding which is developed by men for the women. It is due to this understanding that men are now contributing their share of responsibilities in doing babysitting and also for rearing children (Millar, 2002). Studies witness that although many of the traditional gender gaps between men and women are concluding, there are still many struggles that lie ahead. In terms of salaries where womens salaries have yet to catch up to those of men, with women earning about 65 to 80 percent of what men earn today. Some areas like science, education, and media coverage tend to hold on to old notions of gender roles and stereotypes and are considered as the area of male dominance (Morgan, 1995). It is not that women have emerged as a strong personality in terms of emotions and various skills but women are still considered as a weaker sex. They arent biologically predisposed to do well in science, that husbands are resentful of wives who earn more, and that men are genetically incapable of being sufficient caretakers. Nature has gifted both men and women with certain skills that cannot be challenged. Even though animals also depict the same challenge. Mostly female of the species can conceive and give birth to the young/ lay eggs this is endowed by nature to females only and not the males (Millar, 2003). Even now only the women have to sacrifice her career and due to child birth, women workforce opt for the part-time jobs from their full time jobs for the sake of the family. In majority of the cases, women with college degrees have not been out of work more than six months -- even following childbirth. It is manifested that work and family are the two most important domains of adulthood and both involve time and labor. Jobs are also imperative to get food, clothing and shelter and other services on which individuals and family are dependent. It is observed that paid work also provide a sense of satisfaction, purpose to life besides producing stress. There is also unpaid work in the home, cooking, cleaning, shopping, home maintenance and caring for children are imperative for the health and well being of the family. Family runs on the amalgamation of paid and unpaid work. Till 1950s it was demarcated that men were typically breadwinners who worked outside the home for pay and women were homemakers who worked at home to ensure the smooth functioning of the life (Finch, 1989). In order to maintain comfortable standard of living on one salary was becoming impossible and therefore females have also started contributing their share for the well being of the family. This is also pushed by the changes in the economy and rising demands for consumer goods. This has changed the trends in the society and yielded a positive result in terms of women getting paid. The shift in the gender division of labor has created new work and family challenged throughout society. It is evident that every man and woman is confronted with the challenge of arranging their lives to meet both types of work demands and the decisions they make affect their co-workers spouses, children and other family members and even the employers. Both men and women try to rule out stress and integrate family together. Thus, dual-career family is stressful to certain extent and this is turning out to be the biggest reasons for the divorce and separation and promoting more of cohabitation relationships (Millar, 2002). Even the employers are aware about the work-family conflicts and their effects on worker absenteeism, productivity and turnover. Only hand-full of employers have adopted policies and practices to deal with these issues such as providing onsite elder care and child care, flextime and flexible work arrangements and paid leave banks. There is a remarkable changes in the men’s life too as in 1990s men have shown “fatherhood” movement. Many men have increased their share of family work and some have given up their jobs to become full time fathers or at-home dads. Many studies also indicate that more men are becoming inclined to do unpaid jobs at homes to devote more time at home and with the family these days. This has shifted the responsibilities from the women’s shoulders to some extent. There have been significant changes in the roles that women have fulfilled over the course of American history. However, one thing that has not changed is that families have always depended on the work of women; it is only the nature of the work that has changed. This has made the men to understand and share the domestic responsibilities equally with the wife and making a family a symmetrical family. Sharing of responsibilities and division of work has served a boon in the development of the family and also a step towards the marching for the progress of the children in the family. Women by nature are very versatile and adaptive. She is capable of handling work as well as home very efficiently. She can take up clerical jobs to major managerial posts. At times they work with devotion when family is going through the tough phase or through financial crunch. Women are employed in professions and they own their own businesses. They have joined the military. They have even joined in professional sports. Women work part-time and full-time. They work in blue collar and white collar jobs. They are also wives and mothers, struggling to meet the demands of both careers and families. This is one phase of life where some understanding exist but when women are in still the sole one taking up all the responsibilities and men are simply dominating them as in most of the families of eastern world. Men in these countries are simply putting women as a bonded labor. They do not frame the opinion that both men and women were responsible for the upbringing of children. Boys worked side by side with their fathers and learned to farm or were apprenticed to a trade. Girls were taught the rigors of household labor by their mothers. This is all because of lack of education and awareness that still persist in those societies. With the onset of the Industrial Revolution, both men and womens work changed, especially that of the middle-class woman. The increased industrialization also provided for consumer goods, and freed the middle-class housewife from having to produce these. Although men moved away from home to paid labor, women remained, and an increased importance was now placed on domesticity and motherhood. The importance of education for both sexes was also stressed. After the Civil War, Americans saw the entry of a large number of women into the paid labor force. However, these were not middle-class women, but mainly domestics and factory workers, poor black women and immigrants. Middle-class women were mainly joining clubs and associations, focusing their energies on reform and social issues. The present era witnessed a remarkable change in the lives of both men and women and hence this is a big leap towards the progress of the nation because educated women are more aware and they can rear their family well. A strong and progressive family can contribute well to the society and its development. However, World War II changed all that. With the shortage of men, women were given the opportunity (at least temporarily) to fill what had typically been "male" professions (Chafe 128). Women were encouraged to work as their patriotic duty. By wars end married women and single women were both just as likely to be employed. However, after the war, there was once again the societal push toward keeping women in the home. The 1950s saw a revitalization of family life and a baby boom. However, twice as many women were at work as in 1940 and female employment was increasing at a rate of four times faster than mens. Also, in this time period the greatest growth in the female labor force took place among well educated married women from families of moderate incomes. It is evident that the most significant changes in womens roles were brought about by the rise in feminism in the 1960s and 1970s. Spurred by the Civil Rights movement, women began to organize for equal rights. Through the feminist struggle, and legislation and judicial actions, employment of women finally began to change. Through policies like affirmative action, the government in few years made more efforts to end sex discrimination than in the entirety of the nations history. Women were now allowed and even encouraged to participate fully in the labor market. Women who once went to college just to meet an appropriate mate were now using their college degrees to enter professions. This has given impact on the family life and in the development of the families. Thus, along with the changes in womens roles over the past 50 years have come changes in the family also. It is manifested that the function of the family is no longer that of a primarily economic unit where all the members work together. Although, it is usually both the husband and the wifes salary that are needed to make ends meet, and they can be looked at as an economic unit. Family as more of a safe and is haven from the working place. No longer do children toil alongside their parents in fields and in the home or in factories. The primary focus of the family as a unit has changed from an economic one, to one where the goal is to nurture its members to a greater extent. Another rather obvious change is that the family is no longer the principal place of learning for a child. The role of educator has been relegated to professionals. Children as young as two and three years old are sent to pre-schools. The reference to religious life is not meant as a challenge to the familys moral values, but that religion is another area where the teachings have been relegated to outside authorities. The new roles that women have taken on depend on their relationships with their families. In becoming professionals and joining the labor force, women have had to look for help in the area of child care and home maintenance. Women are always blessed with a choice of having the pleasure of working women or stay at home moms but now the education has changed people drastically. Their thoughts are changed and with the modern civilization over the past 50 years the outlook and perception has changed provided a new insight in terms of thoughts. Fathers are no longer allowed to hide behind the traditional dimension of just being the breadwinners--nor do most of them want that role. Working fathers are now expected to more fully participate in raising their children, and most have to because they have working wives who just cant do it all. Home and child rearing once seen as the "female domain" is not as much only the concern of the wife; it is becoming a shared responsibility. And, a working woman must now depend not only on her spouse, but often on a network of relatives and neighbors to help with child care. Their family roles have changed over the years from being working members in Colonial time, then to revered and coddled family members and now to more independent members of the family unit. The upsurge in womens choices have also sometimes led to a different family structure. The new woman might be the working mother in an upward mobile two-career family. But she is just as likely to be a single mother, deserted spouse, impoverished family head, or, by choice or circumstance, a woman living alone. With more mothers becoming the head of the household, more children are expected to enter day care situations. No matter how much has changed, and though fathers are expected to help, and children are expected to be more self-sufficient, one thread of continuity in womens roles is that mothers are still expected to be the main caretakers of home and children. It is still the mother who most often must juggle her work schedule when her children are sick. It is still the mother that is looked to for nurturing and comfort. Women are still the primary child rearers, even when they work. And, it is still a common complaint of working women that their spouses are not doing their "fair share" when it comes to household duties and child care. Although todays women fill various roles, many women continue along these lines in roles as social workers, teachers, nurses, child care workers and volunteers. Although these roles are notorious for being undervalued and underpaid (or not paid at all) many women seem drawn to this work. Could it be our nurturing side? Women have joined the paid labor force in record numbers. Yet, contrary to the once held belief that the rise in working women would bring about the demise of the family, I think that women have been and are still the glue that holds the family together (Allan, 1999). Extended-family life has occupied an important place in the society. Although couples are expected to set up their own households, they remain in close contact with the members of their larger families. Children generally get to know their cousins well, as much adult leisure time, generally on weekends and holidays, is spent in the company of relatives. It is also common to find children living for extended periods of time for educational or other reasons in households headed by relatives, sometimes even cousins of their parents. These extended-family ties provide a network of support in times of nuclear family crises. It is also common for close friendships among adults to lead to links that are family-like. For example, children often refer to their parents friends as "uncle" or "aunt." Traditional definitions of gender roles have broken down considerably as women have won access to more education and have entered the labor force in larger numbers. However, women made faster progress in traditionally female professions than in other professions. Attitudes regarding the proper roles of men and women in society seemingly no longer follow a fully traditional pattern. A low socioeconomic status for the notion that women benefit as individuals if they work outside the home. There were some differences between the genders. Men and women are considerably divided over whether "women should obey their husbands." Again, men held the more traditional views, but considering the nature of the proposition and its long-established status in civil law, the fact that only slightly more than half of them agreed can be considered a sign of changing times (Miller, 2003). Surveys of working-class respondents can usually be counted on to capture the more traditional views of urban society toward male and female roles because such attitudes are usually associated with lower levels of educational attainment. But working-class are in general not as traditionally minded as could be expected about the issue of women working outside the home. Nonetheless, popular beliefs hold very strongly to the notion that women reach full self-realization primarily through motherhood. This generates strong pressures on women to have children, although most take the necessary measures to have fewer than did their mothers and especially their grandmothers. Employed working-class women usually are able to find preschools and day care for their small children, as these programs are broadly established throughout the country. The extended family also provides a means of obtaining child care (Chafe, 1991). Middle-class to upper-class households usually hire female domestic servants to do housework and take care of children. This practice facilitates the work life of the women of such households. Women can frequently be found in the professions even outside such traditionally female-dominated areas as primary and secondary education, nursing, and social work (Allan, 1999). Government policies are also encouraging women to take legal actions against the injustice. There are various amendments in the constitutions of all nations where women are privileged over men for different reasons; it is a punishable offense if a women faces any kind of domestic violence or harassment or any kind of assault. This has helped her to come forward and march along with the men and provide her contribution in all the fields of life for the development of the society (Women & International Development Program). In the 1950s, the lives of men and women were divided into the “separate spheres” of work and family, so that women needed to be married and have children more than men did. With the rise in women’s paid employment, the differential importance of family roles for men and women has become much less clear, especially given the general decline in the centrality of family roles (Allen, 1999). Conclusion The situation changed so dramatically over the last 50 years. Far-reaching shifts in gender relationships, family structure and the economy have altered the context in which work occurs. Changing attitudes about the appreciation of roles of men and women have made it more acceptable for women to engage in paid work outside the home and for men to participate in unpaid domestic work within the home. Delays in marriage declines in fertility and increases in cohabitation and divorce mean adults especially women are spending less time in rearing their children and more time working for the pay. Increased education level of women shifts in the skills required and valued by firms and a greater demand for “female” labor have made. Changes in the economic conditions also have changed the work and family norms and changes in the paid and unpaid jobs. This is further supported by the Government policies which are also encouraging women to take legal actions against the injustice. There are various amendments in the constitutions of all nations where women are privileged over men for different reasons, it is a punishable offense if a women faces any kind of domestic violence or harassment or any kind of assault. This has helped her to come forward and march along with the men and provide her contribution in all the fields of life for the development of the society (Women & International Development Program). In the 1950s, the lives of men and women were divided into the “separate spheres” of work and family, so that women needed to be married and have children more than men did. With the rise in women’s paid employment, the differential importance of family roles for men and women has become much less clear, especially given the general decline in the centrality of family roles. Women need children more than the men do. It is therefore imperative that women are held more responsible to take care of the family then men do. References 1. Allan, G. (1999)The Sociology of the Family: A Reader Oxford: Blackwell 2. Bernades, J. (1997) Family Studies: An Introduction London: Routledge 3. Cheal, D. (2002). Sociology of Family Life London: Palgrave 4. Chafe, William H. The Paradox of Change. New York: Oxford University Press, 1991. 5. Day Sclater, S. (2000). Access to Sociology: Families 6. Finch, J. (1989). Family Obligations and Social Change Cambridge: Polity Press. 7. Millar, J. (2003). Social Policy and the Family in P. Alcock A. Erskine and M. May (eds.) 2nd edn. The Student Companion to Social Policy Oxford: Blackwell. 8. Millar, J. and Ridge, T. (2002). Parents, children and New Labour: Developing family policy, in M. Powell (2002) (ed.) Evaluating New Labour Welfare Reforms Bristol: Policy Press. 9. Morgan, P. (1995). Farewell to the Family London: Institute of Economic Affairs. 10. (Women & International Development Program). http://www.wid.msu.edu/resources/papers/subject/gen-soc-abstracts.htm Read More