Chapter 21. Stress in Adulthood: Balancing Family and Career

21.1 Synopsis

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You must read each slide, and complete any questions on the slide, in sequence.

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Welcome

Stress in Adulthood: Balancing Family and Career

Current data show that children in the United States are much more likely to have two working parents than in previous decades, and that in about half of all two-parent families, both parents work full time. This activity examines how well employed parents say they balance their careers with their family responsibilities.

Click the 'Get Started' button below to start this activity

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21.2 Stress in Adulthood: Balancing Family and Career

Stress in Adulthood: Balancing Family and Career

In the United States in 2015, more than half (56 percent) of employed parents with children under age 18 said that they struggle to balance their jobs and family obligations. Parents’ gender and level of education had an impact on their response, as shown in the graph below.

Data from Parker et al., November 5, 2015.

21.3 Stress in Adulthood: Balancing Family and Career

Stress in Adulthood: Balancing Family and Career

While only 9 percent of working parents reported that parenting is stressful for them all of the time, those who reported difficulty balancing work and family were more likely to feel stressed by their role as parents than they were to find it enjoyable all of the time. Furthermore, those parents were also less likely to say being a parent is rewarding all of the time.

Click on each button to see the percentage of those who said parenting was either "enjoyable" or "rewarding," or "tiring" or "stressful," based on their level of difficulty balancing work and family.

Data from Parker et al., November 5, 2015.

21.4 Stress in Adulthood: Balancing Family and Career

Stress in Adulthood: Balancing Family and Career

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Question 21.1 Stress in Adulthood: Balancing Family and Career

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There are many possible answers, but yours should include at least three changes—both personal and societal—and offer real-world examples that demonstrate whether or not those changes are feasible.

21.5 Activity Completed!

Congratulations! You have completed this activity. You have received a provisional score for your essay answer, which has been submitted to your instructor.

REFERENCES

Parker, Kim; Horowitz, Juliana Menasce & Rohal, Molly. (2015, November 4). Raising kids and running a household: How working parents share the load. Social & Demographic Trends. Washington, DC: Pew Research Center.