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Patterns of Paid and Unpaid Work: The Influence of Power, Social Context, and Family Background

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 March 2010

Julie Ann McMullin
Julie Ann McMullin*
Affiliation:
University of Western Ontario
*
Requests for offprints should be sent to: / Les demandes de tirés-à-part doivent être adressées à : Julie Ann McMullin, Ph.D., Department of Sociology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON N6A 5C2. (mcmullin@uwo.ca)
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Abstract

Over the last several decades there have been changes in how paid and unpaid labour is divided between men and women: The rate of women's participation in the labour force women has increased as has men's participation in household labour. Although a plethora of research has addressed these changes by analysing couple and individual data, few have examined them within the context of multi-generational families. Using a case study analysis of a three-generation family, this paper shows that gender, class, social context, and family background influence how paid and unpaid work is divided within families. The case study shows that the social context of a given time conditions the options women and men have available to them in negotiating the balance of work and family responsibilities. Yet within this context, family background also matters. Negative childhood experiences were an impetus for adult children negotiating patterns of paid and unpaid labour that were different from those of their parents.

Résumé

Au cours des dernières décennies, il y a eu des changements dans la manière dont les tâches rémunérées et non rémunérées sont réparties entre les hommes et les femmes; le taux de participation des femmes au marché de l'emploi a augmenté, tout comme la participation des hommes aux travaux ménagers. Bien que de nombreuses recherches aient abordé ces changements en analysant des données relatives aux couples et aux individus, peu d'entre elles ont étudié ces éléments dans le contexte des familles multigénérationnelles. Au moyen d'une étude de cas portant sur une famille comportant trois générations, ce document démontre que le sexe, la classe, le contexte social et le vécu familial influencent la manière dont les tâches rémunérées et non rémunérées sont réparties au sein des familles. L'étude de cas révèle que le contexte social d'une période historique donnée conditionne les options dont disposent les femmes et les hommes pour négocier l'équilibre entre le travail et les responsabilités familiales. Cependant, dans ce contexte, le vécu familial est également important. Les expériences négatives vécues pendant leur enfance incitent les enfants devenus adultes à négocier des structures de tâches rémunérées et non rémunérées qui sont différentes de celles de leurs parents.

Keywords

life coursegenderintergenerational relationsagingcours de la viesexerelations intergénérationnelles
Type
Articles
Information
Canadian Journal on Aging / La Revue canadienne du vieillissement , Volume 24 , Issue 3 , Fall/Automne 2005 , pp. 225 - 236
Copyright
Copyright © Canadian Association on Gerontology 2005

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