Changing gender roles

• Wilkinson

  More women are working > economy moved away from male dominated industry sector to traditional female dominated service sector > e.g. beauty industry
• Oakley

  Women's aspirations changed > previous goal was to get married > now focusing on careers, economically independent
• Women's attitudes to work have undergone "genderquake"


  Early 1990's women started to see work and education as more important than having children

  • women gained economic influence in family through employment changes > traditional gender roles broken down
• Criticisms to genderquake

  • Ignores negative aspects of nuclear family - domestic violence
  • Feminists = equal gender roles don't exist - triple shift
  • Thinks family has got better as structures adapt to modern society - mothers of lone parent families struggle