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By Default: How Mothers in Different-Sex Dual-Earner Couples Account for Inequalities in Pandemic Parenting

Year: 2021

Type: article

Abstract: Mothers did a disproportionate share of the child care during the COVID-19 pandemic—an arrangement that negatively impacted their careers, relationships, and well-being. How did mothers account for these unequal roles? Through interviews and surveys with 55 mothers (and 14 fathers) in different-sex, prepandemic dual-earner couples, we found that mothers (and fathers) justified unequal parenting arrangements based on gendered structural and cultural conditions that made mothers’ disproportionate labor seem “practical” and “natural.” These justifications allowed couples to rely on mothers by default rather than through active negotiation. As a result, many mothers did not feel entitled to seek support with child care from fathers or nonparental caregivers and experienced guilt if they did so. These findings help explain why many mothers have not reentered the workforce, why fathers’ involvement at home waned as the pandemic progressed, and why the pandemic led to growing preferences for inegalitarian divisions of domestic and paid labor.

Source: Socius Sociological Research for a Dynamic World

DOI: 10.1177/23780231211038783

Authors: Jessica McCrory Calarco, Emily Meanwell, Elizabeth M. Anderson, Amelia S. Knopf

Institutions: Indiana University Bloomington, Indiana University, Indiana University Indianapolis

Language: English

Topic: Work-Family Balance Challenges

Subfield: Sociology and Political Science

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Gender equality, Reduced inequalities, Decent work and economic growth

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $700