She Works/He Works: How Two-Income Families Are Happy, Healthy, and Thriving [Paperback]

Rosalind C. Barnett (Author), Caryl Rivers (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 15, 1998 | ISBN-10: 067480595X | ISBN-13: 978-0674805958

Readable and challenging, this four-year study of three hundred middle-class and working-class couples debunks the myth of the overwrought working mother with her insensitive husband and neglected children. Drawing on extensive cross-disciplinary research, Rosalind Barnett and Caryl Rivers argue that "collaborative couples," busy as they are, thrive in their diverse roles, and inspire competence and confidence in their children.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Rivers and Barnett's four-year study gives an upbeat picture of the advantages for families of women working. Despite the more complicated logistics, they find that mothers with careers are happier, with more cheerful and competent children, and fathers more engaged in family life.
--Diane Johnson (New York Review of Books )

A wonderful antidote to all the books peddling guilt to the two-worker family. It's good common sense for the 1990's--bound to make you feel better.
--Ellen Goodman (Boston Globe )

Armed with data from their own research, the Adult Lives Project, a well-sampled, longitudinal study of 300 dual-earner couples in two communities in Massachusetts...and many other significant studies, Barnett and Rivers dispel many popularized assumptions about the difficulties faced by employed wives and mothers. For example, a wide-spread assumption exists that employment is bad for women's physical health and mental heath...Barnett and Rivers point out that, in fact...employed women are not showing increasing heart symptoms,...have lower blood pressure and lower cholesterol levels...[and, among married women] show better mental health than those who are not employed. This book [is] persuasive, as well as a delightful read. I want to buy a dozen copies to share with [my colleagues] who have worried with me about whether they will be able to have both a career and a family life. If Barnett and Rivers are right, they will.
--Janet Shibley Hyde (Contemporary Psychology )

[She Works/He Works] identifies the stressful as well as the rewarding aspects of the lives of full-time-employed two-earner couples, based on a study conducted in two communities in the greater Boston area. [It] contends that members of the new two-working-parent American family are thriving--often living happier, healthier, and more well-rounded lives than members of the family of the 1950s. (Journal of Economic Literature )

About the Author

Rosalind C. Barnett is Senior Scholar in Residence at the Murray Research Center at Radcliffe College.

Caryl Rivers is Professor of Journalism at Boston University.

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Harvard University Press (October 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 067480595X
• ISBN-13: 978-0674805958
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,713,194 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Info!, June 4, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: She Works/He Works: How Two-Income Families Are Happy, Healthy, and Thriving (Paperback)

This book finally debunks many of the myths that tend to dog working parents. It turns the table around to show that, in many cases, working parents provide a healthier and happier lifestyle for their families.

Let's face it, the two-income family is hear to stay. It is highly unlikely that we as a society will go back to having a parent stay at home just to tend to its children. It didn't work in the '50s, and it won't work now. We need meaningful change based on a real assessment of the situation--and this book gives one.

Based on Barnett and Rivers' 4 year study of 600 working class and middle-class COUPLES (don't know WHAT that other review is talking about--this book is not based on the study "A Reader" suggests--the data was compiled by 1996 from a study funded by [I think]Radcliff). Many real-life examples are given, and their invaluable insights compliment Barnett and Rivers' points.

Brava!

7 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Yeah! Research supports a positive view of working families., July 20, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: She Works/He Works: How Two-Income Families Are Happy, Healthy, and Thriving (Paperback)

This book gives research to support that working families do not ruin children. I particularly liked the different view of families in the past and the contradictions with the "Leave it to Beaver" time. Historically, women have either worked or even when home did not interact as much with children (they were just "there"). The research also does not seem to show much more happiness for moms that work outside the home part time (which really surprised me). Women as individuals are taking care of themselves and sharing the load. The husbands have become partners more often than not so the marriages are healthier. Gender roles are becoming less rigid. I really enjoyed reading this book and felt a lot of affirmation from it. The only negative side is that some of the information is repetitive.

4 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Optimistic View of Couples Who Work, November 13, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: She Works/He Works: How Two-Income Families Are Happy, Healthy, and Thriving (Paperback)

Barnett and Rivers do a wonderful job of presenting real facts that support a phenomenon so many of us experience. Thank you for the support and optimism!