dads

This is part of a series of posts about how working couples share the under-the-radar chores that, taken together, represent the “psychic burden” of parenting. Be sure to read these parts first: Part I. Survey results Part II. Why it’s fair Part III. Why it’s not fair My last post explored how parents (mostly moms) […]

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This is part of a series of posts about how working couples share the under-the-radar chores that, taken together, represent the “psychic burden” of raising children. Be sure to read these parts first: Part I. Survey results Part II. Why it’s fair My last post looked at why half of the parents surveyed felt they […]

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This is part of a series of posts about how working couples share the under-the-radar chores that, taken together, represent the “psychic burden” of raising a family. Part. I is here. Working moms are bearing more (sometimes much more) of the “psychic burden” of parenting than working dads. Yet, when asked in my recent survey, […]

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Who clips the nails? (Part I. Survey results)

Post image for Who clips the nails? (Part I. Survey results)

by Katrina on July 14, 2010

This is the first of a series of posts about how working couples share the under-the-radar tasks that, taken together, represent the “psychic burden” of parenting. Even though studies show fathers are changing more diapers and folding more laundry than ever, mothers are still bearing most of the “psychic burden” of parenting—the scheduling, organizing, and […]

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Post image for Survey: Who clips their nails?

Survey: Who clips their nails?

by Katrina on June 14, 2010

Studies show today’s fathers are doing significantly more child care and housework than their fathers did. Here’s my question: Are these dads just folding more laundry, or are they also taking responsibility for the complicated logistics of family life? And here’s my other question: Do heterosexual couples divide up chores differently than gay and lesbian […]

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Working parents in the wild

by Katrina on June 1, 2010

Anthropologists are starting to pay attention to a growing tribe of humans: dual-income, multiple-child, middle-class Americans. In other words, families like mine…It got me thinking: What would these young, childless, career-minded graduate students see if they filmed every waking moment in my home this week?

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Herd feelings

by Katrina on May 24, 2010

People keep telling me how brave I am to write about my nervous breakdown on this blog. I don’t feel brave. Actually I’m quite sensitive and I worry about what other people think. It helps that more than 100 women and men, parents and non-parents, have sent emails or written comments on the blog about […]

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Divas, madonnas, and working mamas

by Katrina on May 14, 2010

The other day I saw Jennifer Siebel Newsom, the First Lady of San Francisco, speak at the Commonwealth Club about women and the media. She’s producing a very ambitious documentary called “Miss Representation,” about how the media under-represents women in positions of power and influence. She showed a short clip of the film, which included […]

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A mother of a day

by Katrina on May 11, 2010

I had a truly crappy Mother’s Day this year. I think Anna Jarvis would understand. Inspired by her own mother’s life, she started a campaign in 1907 to recognize mothers for their contribution to society. She was successful in making Mother’s Day a national holiday, but then spent the rest of her life fighting its […]

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How does The Man do it?

by Katrina on March 19, 2010

Men at the top of the org chart are more likely than their colleagues to have a stay-at-home wife. Perhaps this explains why today’s workplace is so out of sync with today’s workers. The guys in charge don’t fold their own laundry.

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