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Hard Choices

Kathleen Gerson

350 Pages
1986

Hard Choices

How Women Decide About Work, Career and Motherhood

University of California Press

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Hard Choices - Summary

In this groundbreaking sociological study, Kathleen Gerson explores the complex decisions women faced during the transformative decades of the 1960s and 1970s regarding work, career, and motherhood. Through detailed life histories of middle and working-class women, the book examines how social changes influenced women's choices and the subsequent impact on their lives. Gerson's research reveals the emergence of new patterns in women's decision-making processes and highlights the challenges they encountered while navigating professional ambitions and family responsibilities.

Key Ideas

1

Social Transformation and Female Identity

The dramatic shift in women's roles during the 1960s and 1970s created new opportunities and challenges, forcing women to redefine their identities beyond traditional domestic roles. This transformation led to increased participation in the workforce and a reassessment of conventional family structures.

2

Class Dynamics in Decision-Making

The study reveals how social class significantly influences women's choices regarding work and family. Middle-class women often had more resources and options available, while working-class women faced different constraints and opportunities, leading to diverse strategies for balancing personal and professional lives.

3

The Evolution of Work-Family Balance

Gerson's research demonstrates how women developed various approaches to managing career and family responsibilities, creating new models of work-life integration that challenged traditional assumptions about motherhood and professional success.

FAQ's

Middle-class women typically had more educational opportunities and professional networks, allowing for more diverse career paths, while working-class women often faced more limited options and needed to prioritize economic stability over career advancement.

The women's movement created new social awareness and opportunities, empowering women to pursue careers and challenge traditional gender roles, while also providing support networks and advocacy for workplace rights and family policies.

Traditional expectations of full-time motherhood evolved to include various models of combining work and family life, with women increasingly viewing professional fulfillment as compatible with, rather than opposed to, good parenting.

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