A Systematic Reflection Upon Dual Career Couples

WZB Discussion Paper No. SP I 2008-505

40 Pages Posted: 10 May 2011

See all articles by Alessandra Rusconi

Alessandra Rusconi

WZB Berlin Social Science Center

Heike Solga

WZB Berlin Social Science Center

Date Written: October 1, 2008

Abstract

Particularly among the highly educated, a persistent upward trend in female employment rates has characterized western industrialized countries in the last decades. Yet, strong gender inequalities persist in the career chances of equally highly qualified men and women. Women are still underrepresented in executive/leading positions in both the private and public sector of the economy. We argue that such gender inequalities are also due to the fact that the majority of highly educated women lives with an equally highly educated partner. For these women the realization of dual careers becomes ever more important and represents an essential prerequisite for their own professional development. Following Phyllis Moen’s “linked lives” idea, we will argue that the achievement or failure of dual-career arrangements is a “social-relational process” (Moen 2003a: 10) and that partners’ lives are embedded with and influenced by each other. In particular, we will discuss how this entwining occurs, which processes at different levels play a role, and how these different processes interact with each other. Finally, we will give some suggestions on the direction for future research.

Keywords: gender, career, couples, family, dual careers

JEL Classification: J12, J24

Suggested Citation

Rusconi, Alessandra and Solga, Heike, A Systematic Reflection Upon Dual Career Couples (October 1, 2008). WZB Discussion Paper No. SP I 2008-505, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1831140 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1831140

Alessandra Rusconi (Contact Author)

WZB Berlin Social Science Center ( email )

Reichpietschufer 50
D-10785 Berlin, 10785
Germany

Heike Solga

WZB Berlin Social Science Center ( email )

Reichpietschufer 50
D-10785 Berlin, 10785
Germany

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