Divorced Mothers' Management of Responsibilities

Pleck's suggestion of asymmetrically permeable boundaries between employment and family (allowing family responsibilities to overlap employment ones) provided conceptual direction for this study on divorced mothers' management of situations that posed a conflict between employment and child care. The majority of the 381 respondents were employed full-time in clerical and sales positions and were recipients of minimal financial or other assistance from former spouse, friends, or relatives. The mothers allowed child care responsibilities to have precedence over employment demands in some, but not all of the conflict situations. The mother herself generally managed the situations related to her child's health or attendance at child's important activities. Experience with dual responsibilities, family life cycle stage, and ability to take time off from work for family matters without negative consequences were significant variables in determining whether the mother performed the child care herself or sought assistance.