![[PDF]](/pb-assets/Icons/adobe-pdf-icon-1498649896243.png){kind=icon}
Abstract
Previous findings from quantitative research have shown that the majority of young Australian women aged 18 to 23 years aspire to be married, with children, and in the paid workforce when they are 35 years of age. However, the Theory of Emerging Adulthood suggests that this period of the lifespan is characterized by a prolonged stage of exploration and self-focussed identity formation, and young women could be expected to be in the process of formulating and changing their future plans and aspirations. Qualitative analysis is conducted on over 600 comments provided by young Australian women from The Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health across three time points, on topics related to these women’s aspirations for the future. This analysis contextualizes existing, quantitative, findings on women’s aspirations for work and family, and provides a richer understanding of women’s thoughts about work and family, and their progression toward decision making around these future roles, in contemporary society.
Keywords aspirations, Australian women, emerging adulthood, family, identity, qualitative, work
References
Section:
|
Abhayaratna, J., Andrews, L., Nuch, H., Podbury, T. (2008). Part time employment: The Australian experience (Staff Working Paper). Canberra, Australia: Productivity Commission. Google Scholar | |
|
Ahrens, C. J. C., Ryff, C. D. (2006). Multiple roles and well-being: Sociodemographic and psychological moderators. Sex Roles, 55, 801-815. Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
|
Arnett, J. J. (2000). Emerging adulthood: A theory of development from the late teens through the twenties. American Psychologist, 55, 469-480. Google Scholar | Crossref | Medline | ISI | |
|
Arnett, J. J. (2004). Emerging adulthood: The winding road from the late teens through the twenties. New York, NY: Oxford University Press. Google Scholar | |
|
Australian Bureau of Statistics . (1997). Australian social trends (Cat No. 4102.0). Canberra, Australia: Author. Google Scholar | |
|
Australian Bureau of Statistics . (2006). Australian social trends: Trends in women’s employment (Cat No. 4102.0). Canberra, Australia: Author. Google Scholar | |
|
Australian Bureau of Statistics . (2008). Australian social trends: Women’s incomes (Cat No. 4102.0). Canberra, Australia: Author. Google Scholar | |
|
Baird, M., Williamson, S. (2009). Women, work and industrial relations in 2008. Journal of Industrial Relations, 51, 331-346. Google Scholar | SAGE Journals | |
|
Baxter, J., Alexander, M. (2008). Mother’s work–family strain in single and couple parent families: The role of job characteristics and supports. Australian Journal of Social Issues, 43, 195-214. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
Blackburn, R. M., Browne, J., Brooks, B., Jarman, J. (2002). Explaining gender segregation. British Journal of Sociology, 53, 513-536. Google Scholar | Crossref | Medline | ISI | |
|
Braun, V., Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3, 77-101. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
Crompton, R. (2002). Employment, flexible working and the family. British Journal of Sociology, 53, 537-558. Google Scholar | Crossref | Medline | ISI | |
|
de Vaus, D. (1997). Family values in the nineties: Gender gap or generation gap? Family Matters, 48, 5-10. Google Scholar | |
|
Grzywacz, J. G., Butler, A. B. (2005). The impact of job characteristics on work-to-family facilitation: Testing a theory and distinguishing a construct. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 10, 97-109. Google Scholar | Crossref | Medline | ISI | |
|
Hoffnung, M. (2004). Wanting it all: Career, marriage, and motherhood during college-educated women’s 20s. Sex Roles, 50, 711-723. Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
|
Human Rights and Equal Opportunities Commission . (2007). It’s about time: Women, men, work and family (final paper). Sydney, Australia: Author. Google Scholar | |
|
Inglehart, R. (1990). Culture shift in advanced industrial society. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. Google Scholar | |
|
Inglehart, R. (2008). Changing values among western publics from 1970 to 2006. West European Politics, 31, 130-146. Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
|
Jaumotte, F. (2004). Labour force participation of women: Empirical evidence on the role of policy and other determinants in OECD countries (OECD Economic Studies, No. 37, 2003/2). Paris, France: OECD. Google Scholar | |
|
Johnstone, M., Lee, C. (2009). Young Australian women’s aspirations for work and family. Family Matters, 81, 5-14. Google Scholar | |
|
Johnstone, M., Lee, C. (manuscript in preparation). Emerging Adulthood and the lives of young Australian women. Google Scholar | |
|
Lee, C., Dobson, A. J., Brown, W. J., Bryson, L., Byles, J., Warner-Smith, P., Young, A. F. (2005). Cohort profile: The Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health. International Journal of Epidemiology, 34, 1093-1098. Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
|
Lee, C., Gramotnev, H. (2007). Life transitions and mental health in a national cohort of young Australian women. Developmental Psychology, 43, 877-888. Google Scholar | Crossref | Medline | |
|
Lee, C., Powers, J. R. (2002). Number of social roles, health, and well-being in three generations of Australian women. International Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 9, 195-215. Google Scholar | Crossref | Medline | ISI | |
|
Lesthaeghe, R., Neidert, L., Surkyn, J. (2006, September 13-14). Household formation and the ‘Second Demographic Transition’ in Europe and the US: Insights from middle range models. Paper presented at the Explaining Family Change, University of Southern California, Los Angeles. Retrieved from http://sdt.psc.isr.umich.edu/pubs/online/rl_romantic_unions_paper.pdf Google Scholar | |
|
McMunn, A., Bartley, M., Hardy, R., Kuh, D. (2006). Life course social roles and women’s health in mid-life: Causation or selection? Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 60, 484-489. Google Scholar | Crossref | Medline | |
|
McRae, S. (2003). Constraints and choices in mothers’ employment careers: A consideration of Hakim’s Preference Theory. British Journal of Sociology, 54, 317-338. Google Scholar | Crossref | Medline | ISI | |
|
Mouw, T. (2005). Sequences of early adult transitions: How variable are they, and does it matter? In Settersten, J. R. A., Furstenberg, J. F. F., Rumbaut, R. G. (Eds.), On the frontier of adulthood: Theory, research, and public policy (chap. 8, pp. 1-48). Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
O’Cathain, A., Thomas, K. J. (2004). “Any other comments?” Open questions on questionnaires—A bane or a bonus to research? BMC Medical Research Methodology, 4. Retrieved from http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2288/4/25. Google Scholar | |
|
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development . (2009). OECD economic outlook (Issue 85). Paris, France: Author. Google Scholar | |
|
Ong, B. N., Dunn, K. M., Croft, P. R. (2006). “Since you’re asking . . .”: Free text commentaries in an Epidemiological study of low back pain consulters in primary care. Quality & Quantity, 40, 651-659. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
Pocock, B. (2003). The work-life collision: What work is doing to Australians and what to do about it. Sydney, Australia: Federation Press. Google Scholar | |
|
Pocock, B. (2005). Work-life “balance” in Australia: Limited progress, dim prospects. Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources, 43, 198-209. Google Scholar | SAGE Journals | |
|
Pocock, B. (2009, October 21). Meaningful work in the 21st century: What makes good jobs good, and what gives them their occasional dark sides. Paper presented at the Foenander Public Lecture, The University of Melbourne, Australia. Google Scholar | |
|
Reid, J., Hardy, M. (1999). Multiple roles and well-being among midlife women: Testing role strain and role enhancement theories. Journal of Gerontology, 54B, S329-S338. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
Schwartz, S. J., Côté, J. E., Arnett, J. J. (2005). Identity and agency in emerging adulthood: Two developmental routes in the individualization process. Youth & Society, 37, 201-229. Google Scholar | SAGE Journals | ISI | |
|
Tangri, S. S., Thomas, V. G., Mednick, M. T., Lee, K. S. (2003). Predictors of satisfaction among college-educated African American women in midlife. Journal of Adult Development, 10, 113-125. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
Verbrugge, L. M. (1987). Role responsibilities, role burdens and physical health. In Crosby, F. J. (Ed.), Spouse, parent, worker: On gender and multiple roles(pp. 154-166). New Haven, CT, US: Yale University Press. Google Scholar | |
|
Weston, R., Qu, L., Parker, R., Alexander, M. (2004). “It’s not for lack of wanting kids”: A report on the fertility decision making project. Melbourne: The Australian Institute of Family Studies. Google Scholar | |
|
Whitehouse, G., Baird, M., Diamond, C., Hosking, A. (2006). The Parental Leave in Australia Survey: November 2006 Report. Retrieved from http://www.uq.edu.au/polsis/parental-leave/level1-report.pdf Google Scholar | |
|
Wicks, D., Mishra, G. (1998). Young Australian women and their aspirations for work, education and relationships. In Carson, E., Jamrozik, A., Winefield, T. (Eds.), Unemployment: Economic promise and political will (pp. 89-100). Brisbane: Australian Academic Press. Google Scholar |
