"Crossing Paths: The Nexus of Gender, Spousal Employment, and Professional Identity Creation"

Abstract

As traditional marriages (i.e., working men with stay-at-home wives) become more rare, both men’s and women’s professional identities and career opportunities are being challenged, revised and reconstructed. In this symposium we explore the nexus of gender, professional identity and the work-home boundary. All four papers begin with the premise that the employment status of couples is an important explanatory variable in organizational studies – in this way they embrace the permeability of the work-home boundary and the shifting cultural image of the masculine breadwinner that is tied to traditional marriage. Ultimately, the research presented in this symposium aims to enhance gender equality at work by challenging expectations based on spousal employment status and help both men and women feel fulfilled in their work and home relationships. Breadwinners and Power Couples: Men’s Professional Identities and Their Wives’ Careers Presenter: Erin Marie Reid; Harvard U. Ideal Leaders?: How Family Involvement and Spousal Employment Shape Employees’ Leadership Behaviors Presenter: Tracy L. Dumas; The Ohio State U. Presenter: Taryn Lyn Stanko; U. of Oregon Do Women Suffer at Work when Men Coworkers Suffer at Home? Presenter: Lakshmi Ramarajan; Harvard U. Presenter: Jennifer L. Berdahl; U. of Toronto Can A Domestic Traditionalist by Night be an Organizational Egalitarian by Day? Presenter: Sreedhari D. Desai; U. of North Carolina Presenter: Dolly Chugh; New York U. Presenter: Arthur P. Brief; U. of Utah