The Impact of Working Mothers - Research Paper Example

?Topic: The Impact of Working Mothers Introduction In the present world, women like men are also employed and look for progress in their career. It is a common thing to observe the mothers to work in order to meet the financial requirements of their family. Mothers who are raising infants to two year olds are in employment nowadays which enhances the social well being of a society. Infants and children in tender age require the care and affection from their mother and when it comes to working mothers, the most affected are the new born child. Nowadays the working mothers conduct a life extremely different from that of their counterparts twenty or thirty years ago. There has been a consistent change in the amount of working mothers in United States since many decades. The employment of mothers not only affects the lives of infants and school going children but also adversely impact on the marital relation of couples. Children in their tender age demand high level of care and attention from their mother and working women should make sure that their children are not left out in the busy schedule of their career. It is a fact that women world over work comparatively more than the men population. In his journal (Scarr,1989,pg.1402-1409)writes that, “In industrialized countries, whether in the Western or Eastern worlds, mother do the majority of shopping, house cleaning, cooking , laundry, and child care in addition to their paid employment”. It is not bad for both the partners to work to support the family but this should not be at the cost of damaging the life of a growing up infant or child. Positive sides of working mothers Working mothers are an encouragement to any nation as the work force of the country along with its economy climb ladders. Working mothers are a source of talent and increase the productive capacity of an economy. In earlier years women were less educated and were tied up to homes to carry out household activities. But industrial revolution in America, led to the employment of women in work sector to fill the gap in the work force demands. Women have this extra – ordinary capability of managing work and home which is outstanding .Working mothers are equal to their male counter parts when it comes to professional skill and talent and also share a responsible position at work place. It is also found that working mothers get more respect at their home and family as they earn and support them financially. Women are more satisfied when they are employed and this brings strong confidence and appreciation in their mind and attitude. As per (Evans, 2010) “When women self-identify them­selves as having a career, they report being more satisfied and feeling more positive in every area”. This positive reelection in working mother extends to the society which project social equality and freedom among both the male and female gender. Working mothers are more respected at their home and also receive credible assistance from their spouse with regard to household activities. Women also feel happier as they are contribute effectively in bringing up their children and responsible for maintaining a good balance between home and work. A working mother is liable to get more opportunity to improve her technical skill and knowledge while working, which is a great advantage for their personality growth. When a women work, she recognizes here power as a women and the ability to do multi –tasking at work and home. She can also take advantage of the education she acquired by implementing it at the work .A working mother has many roles to perform as mother, wife and employee .Understanding these roles help her to enhance and grow as a person and fulfill her responsibilities and duties more widely as women. Even the demands and expectation from these roles are high and keeping up with it can be challenging and bring out the best in her. According to(Kostiainen ,2009,pg.1122-1150)“Even though the family has lost some of its institutional status and meaning in modern societies, its psychological function for the individual remains important. Thus, the roles of a partner and a mother are central elements for most of the women”. When the mother or wife is working, it adds to the prestige and social security of the children and husbands. A working mother is also known to have good health as she is more physically active and mentally strong. The mothers who are working can be more of a role model for their children and guide them to be able and hard working. They not only promote the strength of a women, but also rise up their standards as an ideal wife and mother. The Downside of being a working mother Working mothers are succumbed to multiple amounts of work load and responsibilities as they have to maintain their presence at both home and work. The employed mothers struggle hardly to make up their role at home and work and hence fall under great pressure at occasions. Especially, mothers with infants and school going children find it really hard to meet the demands of family and profession. As per (Weber,1999,pg 785-794)“Working mothers experience a multitude of responsibilities that can be overwhelming and may adversely affect well-being and health. Working mothers are extremely busy in their schedules and often find it hard to spend time on themselves .This can adversely affect their health as they cannot give proper attention to their nutritional and sleeping needs. Moreover the quality of relationship between child and mother get stagnated which is a negative aspect for the family relationship development. Maternal employment has a significant impact on the mental and physical development of a child. Even working mothers find minimal time to spend on cooking and performing household chores, which reduce her connection with family environment. Children with working mothers have depicted to have disturbed social behavior, fear, anxiety and jealousy. When infants are stolen of their physiological and psychological need they tend to develop problems in later life. When mothers attend professional career they tend to interact less with family hence creating distance with family members. Having a close relationship with children and husband is essential to build a happy home. It is seen that children of working mother lag behind in studies as their parents come late home and find less time to help them with studies. Even infants of working mothers are slow developers as they get little attention and care from their mothers. Children of working mothers also presented with low level verbal skills and less efficiency than children whose mother stayed at home. Even children can have less home cooked food and hence resort to fast food and take away from restaurants. Working mothers do not find time to look after the needs of children and husband and this can lead to chaos at home. In their website (United States,2009) writes that“The largest percentage of employed women (40 percent) worked in management, professional, and related occupations; 32 percent worked in sales and office occupations; 21 percent in service occupations; 5 percent in production, transportation, and material moving occupations; and 1percent in natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations”. When women work for highly reputed position, it can also bring in ego problems between husband and them. Men have the habit of feeling dominant to women and if the wife is earning more than him, it can lead to ego conflict, clashes and disagreement in relationship. Some working mothers can even act with pride and excessive self esteem due to their career status which can lead to bad relationship between them and husbands. There are also working mothers who give more priority to profession than children and husbands which can ruin their family life. Only financial wellness cannot bring happiness to a family, it requires proper understanding, care and sacrifice from a working mother. Capabilities of a working mother It was the middle class women who first started joining the work force in order to enable their financial support and living standards. With this also started the concern of work –family issues and how a woman can cope up between work and home. Managing both work and home gave working mother an extra – ordinary status and super human quality. A working mother apart from being a symbol of feminity also started to handle managerial positions by the end of 20th century. “Workplace pregnancy, maternity leaves, and child care issues often constitute transitions in the lives of employed women. However, identity and role struggles may be particularly acute for managerial and professional women because their careers and their traditional female roles seem at odds”(Buzzanell,2005,pg.261-285) However women have proved to be intelligent, calculative, communicative and reliable when it comes to professional field. They have contributed more than average when it comes to professional aspect and stood same level with men. They have also helped in upgrading the destabilized economy by enhancing the supply of work force. Even when confronting challenges from work place, working mothers has the unique capability of understanding and meeting the demands of her family members. Women has proved to world that she is not a soft centered personality but a dynamic, versatile and independent individual who can take over any field if needed. Change in life of working mother after entering work force The life of women in today’s world has considerably changed being an employee .After stepping in to work force women got accustomed to the demanding nature of work place, the obligation, and pressure and career responsibilities. They have pressure from all the angles of being mother, wife and as an employee and to keep up with this is a matter of stress and exhaustion. This common problem faced by women has led to an increase in the bond between female work force by sharing their problems and support with each other. In his article (Wong,1988,pg.29-40) states that,“Women today are no longer stifled by the narrow implications of a traditional society. The present trend leans towards encouraging women to excel, succeed and prosper in their professional endeavors”. Women have been forced to work harder than ever and this left them with no time to spare on any personal interests. They devoted all time to take care of children and husbands and building their role as a career women. Women became richer and prosperous and started feeling independent and free in a world which is men dominated. She started feeling positive and assertive about life and no more felt like a slave to the desires of men. They felt the sense of achievement, accomplishment, success and empowerment after entering the professional world. Women in olden times were considered just as someone to carry on hereditary and serve husbands with all devotion throughout their life. But as working mothers evolved to be career women, her outlook changed and projected an endless power of feminine energy. Bible Perspective on Working Mothers According to Bible, the empowerment of women has always been the idealistic way of life .Bible has examples where women have been administrator and warriors and had to keep away from home to fulfill their duties. The women have been explained as multi- skilled and talented in managing household chores. Bible consider women as a divine figure and viewed her as a personality who has endless power in her .In old and new testament, women have been described to work outside and handle home, children and husband. Women have been praised for her roles as a mother, wife and a worker. There was also description in Bible about women who were successful business person. Even though some verses of bible have suggested a women’s main duty is to look after home, it has not prohibited females from working outside home. As per (Chastain,1988)“Ifyou will carefully read the Bible God worked in many people’s live-in many different ways. We see Deborah as a military commander, Lydia – a seller of purple cloth, Ruth and Naomi as widows, Esther –a rescuer of the Jewish nation and the list goes on. Women in bible had been described to conduct many roles and responsibilities inside and outside home. Working mother is a symbol of pride and privilege for developing and developed nations. God has not made discrimination between man and women; even though physically women are less strong they have enough courage and intelligence to carry out many works like men. However, no human being whether men or women should place more importance to career than God as he is the ultimate aim of life. Since bible has not mentioned anywhere that women cannot work outside home it can be assumed that God wants both men and women to share the workload in order to bring prosperity to home and nation. In current era, the expense of living has gone up and it is necessary for men and women to work in order to make things work. When women have all the capabilities and faculties like men, then why should scriptures stop her from indulging in employment? A religion always wants to give equal status to both the genders and it does not practice partiality. The Bible has praised about women who are military commanders, merchants and business person and hence it is guidance from God that women have to make use her abilities and join workforce. According to (O’Heam,2004)“One other passage in particular seems to indicate that a woman of value may work outside the home. Proverbs 31:10-31 talks about the “virtuous woman” or “woman of valor.” Verse 16 says, “She considers a field, and buys it. With the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.” Here the bible projects an image of independent women who buys land and works for herself .In those days businesses did not exist but whatever women could do independently were handled by them. According to God and Bible, women are endowed with unique personality and dynamic duties and responsibilities in her different roles. She is being given the insurability, patience and vigilance to perform tasks ant both work and home simultaneously. Conclusion Today, majority of mothers are employed and maintain a balance between their work and home. They increased the financial security and stability in a marital relationship and shared the work load with her spouse. Being married and bearing children has not stopped her from exploring the career world. Her work consists of many elements like care taking, performing daily chores of home, career activities and leisure plans. The pressure which is on a working mother is intense. Sometimes balancing work and home women have stressed herself to a great extend. It is extremely important for men to understand the sacrifice performed by working mothers to maintain her family and home. Women get accustomed to her living and working pattern in due course of time but it is necessary for the spouses to understand and support them. As per (Erlandsson,2003,pg.19-32)“Women, regardless of age and social status, are more often ill than men, and a significant group at risk of increased ill-healthiest women working in health care and other service areas in the public sector. Women are weaker than men in physical terms and it is the duty of the employers to allot them work keeping in mind their physical structure and limitation. Women work mainly to support family and willingness to help and contribute to the family welfare should be respected and appreciated. Working mothers are an ideal example of the sacrificing and ever giving attribute of women. Bibliography Buzzanell, P. M. (2005). The Good Working Mother:Managerial Women’s Sensemaking andFeelings About Work–Family Issues. Routledge, 56(3), 261-285 Chastain, K. M. (1988, September 8). What Does The Bible Say About Christian Working Moms?. In The Christian Women. Retrieved August 12, 2011, from http://www.the Christian woman.com/christian-women-topics/christian-working-moms.htm Erlandsson, L. K., & Eklund, M. (2003). The Relationships of Hassles and Uplifts. Women & Health, 38(04), 19-32. Evans, C. (2010). Working Mother Media. In The Working Mother Report. Retrieved August 12,2011,fromwww.wm msurveys.com/25thanniversary.pdf Kostiainen, E. (2009, August). Employee, Partner, and Mother : Woman's Three Roles and Their Implications for Health. Journal of Family issues, 30(8), 1122-1150. O'Heam, T. J. (2004). What Does the Bible Say About.Working Mothers? . In Minutes with Messiah. Retrieved August 12, 2011, from http://www.minuteswithmes siah.com/question n/womanwork.html Scarr, S. (1989). Working Mothers and Their Families. American Psychologist, 44(11), 1402-1409. United States Department of labor (2009). Quick Stats on Women Workers, 2009. In DOL. Retrieved August 12, 2011, from http://www.dol.gov/wb/stats/main.htm Weber, G. J. (1999). The Experiential Meaning of Well-Being for Employed Mothers. Western Journal of Nursing Research, 21(10), 785-794. Wong, L. M. (1988). Working Women. Public Personnel Management, 17(1), 29-40 T Read More