The Psychology of Gender 4th Edition

446 Chapter 12

because middle-class women are more able

to pay for such services. In addition, lower-

class women are more likely to be married to

husbands who are unwilling to participate in

household labor (Arrighi & Maume, 2000).

Effects on the Family

The control theory depicted in Figure 12.3

that was used to explain the effect of work

on women’s health also can be used to ex-

plain the effect of women working on men’s

health (Rosenfield, 1992). Unfortunately, the

benefits to wives translate into costs for hus-

bands. A wife working will increase a husband’s

distress to the extent it decreases his resources

(relative income) and increases his family de-

mands (household responsibilities). According

to this theory, a wife working presents a two-

fold dilemma for men and women, depicted in

Figure 12.4. If a wife’s employment increases

the husband’s family demands and decreases

part-time and full-time work on women’s

health are undoubtedly a function of demands

and power in the family. Full-time employ-

ment contributes much more to economic

resources than part-time employment and

should be more beneficial to women’s health

ifhousehold demands can be met. If demands

cannot be met, part-time employment may be

more adaptive for women’s health.

According to this model, the best way

for full-time employed women to manage

their psychological health is to offset the in-

crease in family demands by having husbands

involved in household labor. Alternatively,

full-time employed women may be able to pay

someone to perform household chores. One

study showed that the paid worker role was

beneficial to women’s health only when they

could afford services to assist them with child

care and household labor (Khlat et al., 2000).

Thus the paid worker role may be more bene-

ficial to middle-class than lower-class women

Husband

household chores

Wife

household chores

Husband

relative income

Wife

relative income

Wife

Distress

Husband

Distress

Wife

Employment

1

1

2

2

FIGURE 12.4 The dilemma behind women’s employment. At the same time that women’s employ-

ment reduces household demands for women, it increases them for men. Because household demands

are associated with increased distress, women benefit and men suffer. At the same time that women’s

employment increases women’s relative income in the family, it decreases men’s relative income and

power. Because relative income is associated with a decrease in distress, women benefit and men suffer.

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