Interesting presentation last night in class by Kezzie Joseph about multi-tasking and the impact on women's health. As she notes on her blog, she sees "multi-tasking [as] more of an woman's health issue," and I wanted to expand a little on that idea.
So, why is it do you think that women, more so than men, feel so pressed for time that they are risking their health? While you may have heard about the "wage gap," the fact that women still make less than men in paid employment, you may not have heard about the "leisure gap," wherein even in double-earner couples women have significantly less leisure time than men do. The reason for disparity in leisure time between women and men is primarily the result of the unequal allocation of housework and childcare. Overwhelmingly, women have the primary responsibility for housework and childcare, even when both partners work.
Given this inequality that shapes women's lives on a daily basis, it's no wonder that women feel pushed to multi-task. Of course, some women have advocated different strategies for resisting this inequality. Some have argued that housework should be paid labor. And, as I mentioned last night some people, women and men, are resisting all the ways our lives have sped up and are part of the Take Back Your Time movement.
5 comments:
I've heard different reasons for why women may have such little time. Most women I know do most of the household chores and they work full-time and /or study. And if you're a woman with children, you seem to have no time.
I've read that Americans work more than those in any other country. It just seems like we don't even allow leisure time to be used for leisurely activities. How many people do you see bringing their work with them when they go on vacation? I know I've done it and so have many others I know. I guess multitasking is one of the ways that we feel we may try to beat the clock and do as much as possible.
I agree that it is more of an American problem. In other countries,2 hour lunch breaks or scheduled siestas are important parts of the day. It allows individuals and families time to rest or re-connect during the hectic workd day. This leads to happier employees who are more productive and less likely to multi-task.
I agree with everyone, I myself work two jobs and go to school and have been doing so since 2000. While my husband works one job and goes to school. I find that women in general bear most ot the burden of having to jungling with many tasks, wearing different hats at different times. Multi tasking, I don't think is a choice, especially for those who are put in situations where there is no other choice.
Multitasking today is a rutine for many of us, including myself.
I don't know how my mother did it. She had little domestic support from my father. He was more of the 'work-2-jobs' mentality.
My wife and I multitask to our hearts content. I agree that she, as the stay at home parent, carries the lions share of oranization and tasking.
She's beautiful, a great mom, and I love her for it.
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