Gender, Family and Policy

In this prescient book Sirin Sung brings together an array of expert contributors to address questions about gender equality and its relation to family, the workplace and society as a whole.

Chapters examine the issues surrounding work–family balance across the globe, considering dual earning families, the division of domestic labour and the impact of family policies on the labour market. The heterogeneous outcomes of childcare policies on motherhood and fatherhood are studied across a range of settings and populations, dissecting the impact of policies such as state-funded childcare and paid parental leave. Contributing authors emphasise the importance of developing gender-equal policies to encourage men’s involvement in care, combined with a shift in organisational culture to allow men to take parental leave, highlighting the crucial need to eradicate gender disparity in childcare and policy use.

Presenting a global perspective on gender norms and family policies, this book is invaluable for students and academics specialising in gender studies, family studies, social policy and sociology. Policymakers will also find the global comparison of family policies and gender beneficial.