need a reading response. ( two pages, in 5 hours)

11/1/2017 Yuzu: Psychology of Gender: Fourth Edition

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social contacts—for both women and men. Employment also can affect one’s sense of control (Rosenfield, 1989). To the extent that employment increases one’s sense of control, it should be helpful. However, if employment decreases one’s sense of control, it may be harmful. Employment may enhance women’s feelings of control by increasing women’s economic resources and thus power within the family. However, employment may detract from women’s sense of control by making it more difficult for women to manage household responsibilities. Thus paid work has the potential to increase resources for women in one area but decrease resources in another. Each of these resources has implications for control. This model is shown in Figure 12.3.

This model has been supported by three different studies (Rosenfield, 1989). In all three, women who were susceptible to high family demands (i.e., women employed full time with children) were more distressed than men, whereas women with fewer demands (women employed part time with children or women employed full time without children) had levels of distress similar to men’s. If demands were low, employed women were less distressed than housewives. Employment also increased women’s perceptions of control when it increased their relative income in the family. Women with higher relative incomes had a heightened sense of control and, subsequently, reduced distress. In total, the healthiest women in this study were those who had children and were employed part time. These women gained some advantage from an increase in relative income that was not offset by an increase in demands.

Currently, there is debate between the effects of part-time and full-time paid work on women’s health. The model is useful for understanding this issue, as the effects of part-time and full-time work on women’s health are undoubtedly a function of demands and power in the family. Full-time employment contributes much more to economic resources than part-time employment and should be more beneficial to women’s health if household demands can be met. If demands cannot be met, part-time employment may be more adaptive for women’s health.

FIGURE 12.3Model of how employment influences women’s health. To the extent that employment increases women’s household demands, employment reduces perceptions of control and harms health. To the extent that employment increases women’s relative income in the family, employment increases perceptions of control and benefits health. Source: Adapted from Rosenfield (1989).

According to this model, the best way for full-time employed women to manage their psychological health is to offset the increase in family demands by having husbands involved in household labor. Alternatively, full- time employed women may be able to pay someone to perform household chores. One study showed that the paid worker role was beneficial to women’s health only when they could afford services to assist them with child care and household labor (Khlat et al., 2000). Thus the paid worker role may be more beneficial to middle- class than lower-class women because middle-class women are more able to pay for such services. In addition, lower-class women are more likely to be married to husbands who are unwilling to participate in household labor (Arrighi & Maume, 2000).

Effects on the Family

11/1/2017 Yuzu: Psychology of Gender: Fourth Edition

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The control theory depicted in Figure 12.3 that was used to explain the effect of work on women’s health also can be used to explain the effect of women working on men’s health (Rosenfield, 1992). Unfortunately, the benefits to wives translate into costs for husbands. A wife working will increase a husband’s distress to the extent it decreases his resources (relative income) and increases his family demands (household responsibilities). According to this theory, a wife working presents a twofold dilemma for men and women, depicted in Figure 12.4. If a wife’s employment increases the husband’s family demands and decreases the wife’s family demands, the husband will be more distressed and the wife will be less distressed—because family demands are associated with increased distress. To the extent that wife’s employment decreases the husband’s relative income and increases the wife’s relative income, the husband will be more distressed and the wife will be less distressed— because relative income is associated with reduced distress.

FIGURE 12.4The dilemma behind women’s employment. At the same time that women’s employment reduces household demands for women, it increases them for men. Because household demands are associated with increased distress, women benefit and men suffer. At the same time that women’s employment increases women’s relative income in the family, it decreases men’s relative income and power. Because relative income is associated with a decrease in distress, women benefit and men suffer.