Families in Upheaval Worldwide: Mothers are Carrying
Increasing Responsibility
By Tamar Lowing, New York Times Service, New York
"Around the world in rich and poor countries alike, the structure of
family life is undergoing profound changes," a new analysis of research of
numerous countries has concluded. "The idea that the family is a stable and
cohesive unit in which father serves as an economic provider and mother serves
as an emotional care-giver is a myth," said Judy Birth, an author of the study.
The reality is that trains like unwed motherhood, rising divorce rates, small
households, and the feminization of poverty are not unique to America, but are
common worldwide. The report, Families and Focus, was released Tuesday by the
Population Council, an international non-profit group based in New York that
studies reproductive of health. It analyzed a variety of demographic and
household studies from dozens of countries around the world. Among the major
findings, whether because of abandonment, separation, divorce, or deferral
spouse, marriages are dissolving with increasing frequency. In many developed
countries, divorce rates doubled between 1970 and 1990. And in less developed
countries, about a quarter of first marriages end by the time women are in
their forties. Parents in their prime working years face growing burdens
carrying for children who need to be supported through more years of education,
and for their own parents who are living longer. Unwed motherhood is
increasingly common, virtually everywhere, reaching as many as a third of all
births in northern Europe, for example. Children in single-parent household
usually families with only a mother parent, are much more likely to be poor
than those who live with two parents, largely because of the loss of support
from their fathers. Even in households where fathers are present, mothers are
carrying increasing economic responsibility for children. "The idea that
families are changing in similar ways even in very different cultures should
bring about new thinking in social policy," experts say, "and in particular,
on the role government should play on supporting families." The Population
Council report says women around the world tend to work longer hours than men
at home and on the job. In studies of 17 less developed countries, women's
work hours exceed men's by 30%. Data from 12 industrialized countries found
that formally employed women worked about 20% longer hours than employed men.
Women's economic contributions are also becoming increasingly important
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