Having it all or doing it all? The construction of women's lifestyles in time-crunched households

Citation

Kay T (1998) Having it all or doing it all? The construction of women's lifestyles in time-crunched households. Loisir et Société / Society and Leisure, 21 (2), pp. 435-454. https://doi.org/10.1080/07053436.1998.10753663

Abstract
Employment empowers women to challenge gender inequity in leisure, with the practical and psychological gains being potentially greatest for women in highstatus jobs. These benefits may now be countered by trends towards longer working hours. This article investigates the lifestyles of full-time employed women in dual- earner households with one or more pre-school child. In-depth semi-structured interviews (n = 11) examined how women constructed and experienced their life- style, and the extent to which this was affected by their partner's values and behaviour. The results indicate retrenchment of traditional gender roles and inequitable access to leisure despite high employment status. Parenthood led mothers to containing their work hours while men did not. Women's leisure deprivation in time-crunched households came from the way couples negotiated pressures on household discretionary time rather than from their paid work commitments. Men maintained additional work hours and personal leisure; women reduced both. Time crunch in dual-earner households disproportionately affected the female partner's leisure.

People

Professor Tess Kay

Deputy Dean and Head of Sport, Sport