Unmasking the taken for granted

Abstract

In this paper, we consider some of the taken‐for‐granted assumptions salient in the work–family literature, including assumptions about: gender and work–family, women's employment and the well‐being of dependants, employers as work–family stakeholders, work–family in society, work–family conflict, work–family and diversity/justice, the contexts of work–family, and time.

En este artículo, consideramos algunas de las destacadas suposiciones dadas por descontado en la literature sobre el tema trabajo/familia, incluyendo suposiciones sobre: genero y trabajo/familia; el empleo de las mujeres y el bienestar de las personas a su cargo; empleadores como interesados en asuntos de trabajo/familia; trabajo/familia en la sociedad; conflicto entre trabajo y familia; trabajo/familia y diversidad/justicia; y los contextos de trabajo/familia, y tiempo.

Keywords:

• work
• family
• work–family
• epistemology
• assumptions
• gender
• women
• enmployment
• work–family conflict
• justice
• equity
• Palabras clave el trabajo
• familia
• trabajo–familia
• epistemología
• suposiciones
• genero
• mujeres
• empleo
• conflicto laboral–familiar
• justicia
• equidad

Notes

Recognizing the value of cross‐disciplinary discourse, each of the academic centres supported by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation has fostered the collaboration of researchers with different disciplinary backgrounds as a way to help the investigators challenge their own assumptions about the work–family experiences being studied.

As we prepared this paper, it was necessary to set parameters around the publication dates of the literature that would be included in the analysis. We decided to include literature published before 2000. Unfortunately, some important publications which appeared in print after 1999 are, therefore, not mentioned in this paper.

Descriptive information about the survey which gathered information from the Network affiliates is available online at: http://www.bc.edu/bc_org/avp/wfnetwork/timelines/2002/about.html. See also the work–family timelines published on the website of the Sloan Work and Family Research Network which provide highlights of the development of the work–family area of study and the historical contexts: http://www.bc.edu/bc_org/avp/wfnetwork/timelines/index.html. Much of the literature identified as a result of this study was largely (though not exclusively) from North America; consequently, we have also referenced selected publications written by authors from other parts of the world.

Several dimensions of the discussion about the implications that the changing employer–employee contract could have are addressed in Handy's The age of unreason (1989).

The European Union, for example, has stated that social inclusion is one of the Union's basic purposes, along with goals such as ‘… social justice, sustainable development, the promotion of full employment and quality of work … equality between men and women …’, among others (EAPN Welcomes Inclusion of Social Affairs at European Convention, 2003).

Marcie Pitt‐Catsouphes is an assistant professor at the Boston College Graduate School of Social Work. For ten years, she conducted research at the Center for Work & Family at Boston College, most recently as the Center's Director. She is currently a co‐principal investigator for a study, “Understanding the First Job: Nurturing Families.” She is also a co‐principal investigator for the Sloan Work and Family Research Network. In 2003, Dr. Pitt‐Catsouphes initiated a pilot project designed to provide research‐based information and about work‐family issues to elected representatives at the state level. She is currently co‐editing the volume, Work and Family Handbook: Multi‐disciplinary Perspectives with Ellen Kossek and Stephen Sweet. She is also the author or co‐author of several practitioner publications, including The Metrics Manual; Enhancing Strategic Value – Becoming a Company of Choice (1998) and The Link – A Practical Guide for Conducting a Work/Life Workplace Assessment (1997). Address: Boston College Graduate School of Social Work, 308 McGuinn Hall, Chestnut Hill, MA, USA.

Kathleen Christensen directs the Program on the Workplace, Workforce and Working Families at the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation in New York City. She founded the Program in 1994 with the primary goal of increasing scholarly, business and public understanding of the interactions between the family and the workplace. Before launching the Sloan Foundation's Program, she was a Professor of Psychology at the Graduate School and University Center of City University of New York, and prior to that she served as a policy analyst at the Urban Institute in Washington, D.C. Kathleen Christensen has published extensively on the changing nature of work and its relationship to the family. Her books include Contingent Work: American Employment Relations in Transition (1998), Turbulence in the American Workplace (1991), and Women and Home‐based Work: Directions and Policy (1988). Address: Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, NY, NY, USA.