Sociology 264

The Soci= ology of Work and Family

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Spring 2005

Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays 1-2:55pm

Newcomb 9

Instructor: Dr. Leslie Cintron

Office Hours: Wednesday 10:00am-12:00pm

Office: Newcomb Hall N-22

Email: cintronl@wlu.edu

Phone: 458-8791

Course Overview:

This course examines selected topics and research in the growing area of work-family studies. During the term we will explore how wo= rk and family life interconnect and influence each other and the implications = of these linkages for women, men, children, employers, the community and socie= ty. Of particular interest will be how gender, social class, family structure a= nd race and ethnicity affect the ability to manage work and family.

Topics will include the history of the work-family = field; changing attitudes towards work-life balance; working families and the time squeeze; gender and the household division of labor; dual-career and single parent families; low-income families; work and the caregiving conflict; mothers, fathers, work and family; work-family integration from the perspec= tive of children; strategies for resolving work-family conflict; international perspectives on work and family; and corporate and government responses and their effects.

This term students will be conducting a special pro= ject that explores the availability, affordability and quality of childcare in Rockbridge Country.

Required Texts:

The readings below ar= e the required texts for the course. These can be purchased at either the W&L University Bookstore or your friendly neighborhood or web bookstore:

· = Ellen Galinsky and Judy David, Ask the Children: The Breakthrough Study That Reveals how to Succeed at Work and Parenting, HarperCollins Publishers, 2000.

· = Rosanna Hertz and Nancy Marshall (eds.), Working Families: The Transformation of the American Home, University of California Press, 2001.

· Juliet B. Schor, The Overworked American: The Unexpected Decline of Leisure, Bas= ic Books, 1993.

· Eugene Smolensky and Jennifer Appleton Gootm= an (eds.), Working Families and Growing Kids: Caring for Children and Adolescent= s Committee on Family And Work Policies, National Research Council Press, 2003.

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· “Mommies and Daddies on the Fast Track: Successful Parents in Demanding Professions,” Special Issue of The ANNALS o= f the American Academy of Political and Social Science, November 2004, Volume 596, No. 1.

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·= ; = Course Reading Packet for Sociology 264. Available in Week 2 from Karen Lyle in Newcomb Hall: lylek@wlu.edu

·= ; = Please Note: Readings not included in the books or coursepack will be either distributed in class or available online, as indicated on the syllabus. Links to online readings will be available on the course website.

Explanation of Course Requirements:

The course consists of a hybrid of lectures and seminar-style class discussions. The lectures are meant to supplement rather than replace the readings. As= a result, students are expected to attend the lectures, read assigned texts p= rior to class, and attend and actively participate in class discussions.

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Class Discussions: Students are required = to attend and actively participate in the class discussions. These are an opportunity to discuss and reflect on the themes in both the readings and lectures. Since your effective class participation is vital to the overall quality of the course it is imperative that you complete the assigned readin= g prior to attending the class discussion.

Class Presentation and Discussion Co-leading: Each student will be asked to do one short (5-10 minutes) presenta= tion introducing the key themes, findings, and concepts for one set of assigned readings. Presenters will als= o be asked to prepare 3-5 questions that will help generate class discussion and they will assist in the discussion-leading.

Response Essays: Prior to class meetings with assigned readings each student is required to write a response essay on the readings and post it on the Blackboard course website for Sociology 264. Th= ese essays should be carefully-constructed and cogent responses to the issues r= aised and should reflect a thoughtful analysis of the assigned readings. These response essays should be posted by 7pm one day prior to our class discussion. All class members should read the responses of others bef= ore our class meeting.

Group Project: Childcare in Rockbridge= County
This term students will conduct a group research project assessing childcare in Rockbridge County. Students will construct a question= naire, collect and analyze data, present the research results and write research reports.

Students are expected to actively participate in all stages of the research project. As final assignments, you will write research reports (15= -20 pages) on selected topics chosen from data collected in the research projec= t.

Final Research Reports are due by noon (12pm) on Monday= , May 30^th, 2005. Please be mindful of the due date, as papers will be graded down one letter grade (e.g. B becomes C) for each day late (this includes essays turned in after 12pm on the due date.) =

Honor Code: All students = are responsible for knowing and abiding by the University Honor Code. Unless specifically stated by the instructor, all work for the course should be an individual effort.

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Final grad= es are determined as follows:

Research Project = = 50%

Class Participation 30%

Response Essays &= nbsp; &nbs= p; 12%

Class Presentation &nb= sp; 8%

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Course Schedule:

Week 1

4/18 = ; Course Overview; Introduction to Work and Family

Reading= :

Radcliffe Public Policy Center, LifeR= 17;s Work: Generational Attitudes Toward Work-Life Integration, 2001. [Online.]
Harriet Presser, ̶= 0;The Economy that Never Sleeps”= ;, Contexts; Spring 2004. [Online.]

· Smolensky a= nd Gootman, Working Families and Growing Kids, (Chapters 1 & 2).

4/20 = ; Working Families and The Time Squeeze

Reading= :

Juliet Schor, The Overworked American= , (Chapters 1 & 2).
Hertz and Marshall, Chapter 10. Changing the Structure and Culture of Work. =
Hertz and Marshall, Chapter 1. The Rise of the Dual Earner Family [Recommend= ed].

4/22 &nbs= p; No Class Meeting –NCUR Conference.

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Assignment:

· = Watch the Documentary Video “Juggling Work= and Family” [On reserve in Leyburn Library].

Post a reflection essay (~2 pages) about the documentary on Blackboard cour= se website before 7pm on 4/24.

Week 2

4/25 = ; Parent= s, Work and Family

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Reading= :

Children, Work and Family: Some thoughts on “Mother Blame”.
Men’s Family Work.

· Smolensky a= nd Gootman, (Chapters 4 & 6).

4/27= &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Chil= dcare

Reading= :

· Smolensky a= nd Gootman, (Chapters 3, 5 & pp. 241-56).

Hertz and Marshall, Chapter 13. From Baby-sitters to Childcare Providers.

4/29 &= nbsp; Research Project Sessi= on – Research Methods & Strategies

Reading= :

· Urban Institute, Primary Child Care Arrangements of Employed Parents: Findings from = the 1999 National Survey of America’s Families. [Online]

· Earl Babbie, The Practice of Social Research, (Chapters 4, 6, 9). [CP]

Week 3

5/2 = Professional Families

Reading= :

5/4 = Low-Income Families

Reading= :

Lisa Dodson, Ellen Bravo and Tiffany Manuel, Keeping Jobs and Raising Children in Low-Income America. [Online]
Susan Lambert, “Lower-wage worke= rs and the new realities of work and family.” Annals of the

American Academy= of Political and Social Science, 562 (1999): 174-190. [CP]

· Smolensky a= nd Gootman, Chapter 7. Effects of We= lfare Reform. [Recommended]

5/6 &= nbsp; Research Project Sessi= on

Week 4

5/9 &= nbsp; Gender and the Household Division of Labor

Reading:

Melissa A. Milkie, Pia Peltola, “Playing All the Roles: Gender and the Work-Family Balancing Act,”

Journal of Marriage and the Family= , Vol. 61, No. 2. (May, 1999), pp. 476-490. [CP]

Harriet B. Presser, “Employment Schedules A= mong Dual-Earner Spouses and the Division of Household Labor by Gender̶= 1;, American Sociological Review,= Vol. 59, No. 3. (Jun., 1994), pp. 348-364. [CP]

· = Barbara J. Risman, Danette Johnson-Sumerford, “Doing It Fairly: A Study of Postgender Marriages”, Journal of Marriage and the Family= , Vol. 60, No. 1. (Feb., 1998), pp. 23-40. [CP]

5/11 = Children, Work and Family

Reading:

Ask the Children, (Chapters Intro - 6 & 11, skim rest of book).
The Kinderdult.

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5/13 = ; <= /span>Research Project Sessi= on

Week 5

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5/16 = ; Race, Work and Family

Reading= :

Bart Landry, Black Working Wives, 2000. (Chapters 1-3). [CP]

5/18  = ;            &n= bsp; Employers, Work and Family

Reading:

Hertz and Marshall, Chapter 6. How are Small Businesses Responding to Work a= nd Family Issues?

Toward a New View of Work and Family Life.

Changing the Structure and Culture of Work.

5/20      = ;           Public Policy, Work and Family

Reading:

Review the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) L= aw and Regulations. [Online]

A Workable Balance: Report to Congress on Family= and Medical Leave Policies Executive Summary Extract. [Online]

Naomi Gerstel, Katheri= ne McGonagle, “Job leaves and the limits of the Family and Medical<= /li>

Leave Act,” Work and Occupations 26 (1999):510-534. [CP]

·         Smolensky a= nd Gootman, Chapter 8. Public Polici= es to Support Working Families. [Recommended]

Week 6

5/23      = ;           Intern= ational Perspectives on Work and Family

Reading:

Linda Haas, “Nurturing Fathers and Working Mothers: Changing Gender Ro= les in Sweden” in Jane Hood ed., Men, Work and Family, Pp. 238-61 [CP]

Alice Cook, “Public Policies to Help Dual-Earner Families Meet the Demands of the Work World”, Industrial and Labor Relations Re= view, v. 42, Issue 2, Jan 1989, 201-215. [CP]

5/25  =             &nb= sp; Research Project Session – Student Presentations of Research Results

5/27  =             &nb= sp; Research Project Session – Student Presentations of Research Results

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May 30: Final Research Reports Due by Noon.<= /b>