This study examines the relationship between economic pressure and the employment of married women. Previous research on the subject has generally used husband's income or total family income minus wife's earnings as indicators of economic need. It is argued here (1) that the amount of economic pressure implied by a given family income is a function of the family's particular income needs, and (2) that such income needs are to a large extent subjectively determined. / An attempt is made to analyze the respective impacts of three separate measures of economic pressure on wives' employment. One is family income adequacy as determined objectively by the family's composition. A second is family income adequacy as determined by estimated subjective perceptions of family members. The third is the family's income, discounting any earnings by the wife. / The study is based on interviews of 4020 consumer units from the 1972-1973 Consumer Expenditure Survey. The research strategy involves observing the effects of economic pressure on wives' employment, while controlling for pertinent influences. By means of multiple regression analysis, the relative explanatory power of each of the economic pressure measures is determined. / Regardless of the measure used, economic pressure is positively related to the probability of the wife being employed. Among wives who are employed, economic pressure is positively correlated with the probability of working on a full time basis. The measure of income adequacy which is subjectively determined appears to be the indicator of economic pressure most closely associated with wives' employment, since it explains substantially more than either objective income adequacy or income. Economic pressure's relationship to the probability of a wife working does not differ markedly from its relationship to the probability of an employed wife working full time: the amount of explanatory information in the two cases is about the same. None of the results reflect any differentials by race. / The findings are discussed in the context of their social, economic, political, and demographic implications. A number of suggestions are made in the interest of future research. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 42-09, Section: A, page: 4163. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1981.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_74600 |
| Contributors | MYERS, FREDERICK ALAN., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 142 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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