Jennifer Glass Caitlyn Collins The University of Texas at Austin
In all industrialized countries, women have entered the paid labor force in unprecedented numbers over the past half-century while still maintaining primary responsibility for childrearing. Today, the majority of mothers with children are in the paid labor force. This study investigates how working mothers in the western world balance their work and family obligations. The investigators will conduct 100 in-depth interviews with working mothers from four countries: Germany, Sweden, Italy, and the United States¬. They will examine how different ideals of motherhood and gender equality are embedded in the work-family policy regimes of these four countries. Given their different policy regimes, the research examines how working mothers negotiate the constraints and opportunities facing them daily as they balance motherhood and employment. Interview topics include: workplace interactions with supervisors and colleagues, employment history and future plans, the transition to parenthood, use and perceptions of various work-family policies, conflict between work and home responsibilities, dividing family care with a partner, opinions about parenting, interpretations and understandings of their careers and families, personal successes and regrets, and general views on the status of working mothers in their respective countries. This research is potentially the first comparative study to incorporate mothers' voices into the scholarly debates about work-family policy around the world. Understanding women's perspectives about what works (and what hinders) their achievement of work-family balance should be central to any scholarly endeavor to craft, advocate for, and implement work-family policy as a force for social change.
Findings from this project will contribute to policy debates about improving mothers' work and family lives in 21st century Western industrialized countries. With many countries spending a sizeable portion of their GDP on work-family policies, this study will provide crucial insight into the most effective targets for these expenditures, benefitting both mothers and governments. This project will provide vital knowledge for policy debates about how to better support mothers in their careers and families given that the vast majority of mothers participate in the globalized economy while raising children today.
