ERIC Number: EJ1013576
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2013
Pages: 11
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1463-9491
EISSN: N/A
Choosing Work and Care: Four Australian Women Negotiating Return to Paid Work in the First Year of Motherhood
Boyd, Wendy; Walker, Susan; Thorpe, Karen
Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood, v14 n2 p168-178 2013
Australian women make decisions about returning to paid work and care for their child within a policy environment that presents mixed messages about maternal employment and childcare standards. Against this background, an investigation of first-time mothers' decision-making about workforce participation and childcare was undertaken. Four women were studied from pregnancy through the first postnatal year using interview and diary methods. Inductive analyses identified three themes, all focused on dimensions of family security: financial security relating to family income,
emotional security relating to childcare quality, and pragmatic security relating to childcare access. The current policy changes that establish improved childcare quality standards in Australia present a positive step toward alleviating family insecurities, but are insufficient to alleviate the evidently high levels of tension between workforce participation and family life experienced by these four women transitioning back into the workforce in Australia. (Contains 1 table.)
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Reentry Workers, Females, Family Work Relationship, Decision Making, Employed Parents, Employed Women, Child Care, Educational Quality, Pregnancy, Diaries, Family Income, Family Financial Resources, Interviews, Case Studies
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Early Childhood Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Australia
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A