Against Symmetrical Debate

Question 1

Oakley AO1

Answer 1

-Feminist View=Society’s male dominance is the root of unequal labor division.
-Their Findings: Most husbands ‘helped’ weekly (e.g., taking children for a walk, making breakfast).
-Oakley’s Argument=Such minimal ‘help’ does not indicate true symmetry.
- Only 15% of husbands were heavily involved in housework.
- 25% were significantly involved in childcare.
-Men’s Role=Typically engaged in more enjoyable tasks (e.g., occasional playtime), while women did most of the routine housework and caregiving.
-Impact on Women=Women lost pleasurable time with children and used their ‘spare’ time for housework.

Question 2

Oakley AO3

Answer 2

Wilmott and young

Question 3

Dex and ward AO1

Answer 3

• Support for Boulton: Dex and Ward agree that mothers are predominantly responsible for a child’s security and well-being.
  -General Involvement=78% of fathers played with their 3-year-olds.
  -Sick Childcare=Only 1% of fathers took primary responsibility for caring for a sick child.

Question 4

Dex and ward AO3

Answer 4

Sullivan

Question 5

Hochshild AO1

Answer 5

Emotion Work and the Triple Shift
-Definition=Managing the feelings of others and themselves (e.g., cheering up family members, helping with stress).
- Duncombe and Marsden
-Argument=Women perform a ‘triple shift’
1.Paid Work
2.Housework
3.Emotion Work

Question 6

Southerton AO1

Answer 6

Flexible Working and De-Routinisation:
-Issue=Flexible work patterns lead to ‘de-routinised’ time, making quality time hard for women to achieve.
-Cause=Emergence of the 24/7 society.
-Men=More likely to have blocks of uninterrupted leisure time.
-Women=Leisure time is often interrupted by childcare and involves multi-tasking.
-Dual Burden:
-Implication=Women face a dual burden, managing an increased volume of activities.

Question 7

Southerton AO3

Answer 7

Sullivan