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Title: Economic Precarity and the Gender Revolution: Young Adults' division of labor in their future families
Citation Type: Miscellaneous
Publication Year: 2019
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Abstract: Acceptance of mothers’ labor force participation is commonly considered evidence of support for gender equality. This approach overlooks perceptions of both men’s and women’s behavior in public and private spheres. Using Monitoring the Future surveys (1976–2014) to trace youths’ imagined division of labor arrangements, we show a more complicated picture of gender attitudes. Over this period, contemporary young people exhibited greater openness to a variety of division of labor scenarios for their future selves as parents, although the husband-asbreadwinner/wife-as-homemaker setup remained most desired. Using latent class analysis, we identify six configurations of attitudes: conventionalists, neo-traditionalists, conventional realists, dual-earners, intensive parents, and strong intensive parents. None of the configurations are gender egalitarian, showing equal support for both parents’ earning and care work. Race predicts preferences more than gender. By 2014, a greater proportion of young White people were classified as intensive parents while young Black people were more likely to desire a dualearner arrangement. Our findings suggest attitudes about divisions of labor are not necessarily tied to gender egalitarian principles, instead reflecting broader economic concerns about adequate income and parents’ time with children. Future research must distinguish acceptance of flexibility in dividing work and care responsibilities from gender egalitarian attitudes.
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Authors: Dernberger, Brittany, N; Pepin, Joanna, R
Publisher: University of Maryland
Data Collections: IPUMS CPS
Topics: Family and Marriage, Gender, Labor Force and Occupational Structure
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