Download
Download Free Electronic Document
Format | File Size | Notes |
---|---|---|
PDF file | 0.7 MB | Use Adobe Acrobat Reader version 10 or higher for the best experience. |
Purchase
Purchase Print Copy
Format | List Price | Price | |
---|---|---|---|
Add to Cart | Paperback10 pages | $20.00 | $16.00 20% Web Discount |
Using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of the High School Class of 1972, this paper, a reprint of an article that originally appeared in American Sociological Review, v. 50, no. 2, Apr. 1985, examines the impact of the transition to parenthood on the amount of time men and women spend on paid employment. The majority of the women have jobs prior to pregnancy; most leave these jobs as the pregnancy progresses, so that only one woman in five remains employed in the month that the child is born. Some women return to work, but by two years after the birth, employment rates reach only 60 percent of their previous levels. In the absence of parenthood, the proportion employed would have steadily increased, so that the real employment deficit due to parenthood exceeds that implied by a comparison of employment before and after the birth. The most important contributor to women's decreased work activity following parenthood is withdrawal from employment. On virtually all measures used, fathers show higher levels of work activity than would be expected in the absence of the first birth, but this "parenthood effect" predates the pregnancy by a substantial amount.
This report is part of the RAND Corporation Note series. The note was a product of the RAND Corporation from 1979 to 1993 that reported other outputs of sponsored research for general distribution.
This document and trademark(s) contained herein are protected by law. This representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for noncommercial use only. Unauthorized posting of this publication online is prohibited; linking directly to this product page is encouraged. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of its research documents for commercial purposes. For information on reprint and reuse permissions, please visit www.rand.org/pubs/permissions.
The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis. RAND's publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors.