This innovative book examines changes in family practices and paid work in the 21st century. Focusing on highly qualified mothers who combine childcare with employment, it makes a valuable contribution to current debates. It also takes into account the views of fathers, making it a rounded study of family practice in the new millennium. Hard Labour puts forward some new and thought-provoking arguments about both mothers' and fathers' commitments to parenting and paid work. The first part of the book provides an up-to-date, comprehensive and readable overview of the literature on motherhood, fatherhood, family practices, and women in employment. The second part draws on a qualitative study of the lives of twenty mothers and their husbands or partners, each of whom is educated to degree level or above, and has at least one child under five. This study considers key aspects of the family lives of the men and women interviewed, including: How they manage their commitments to one another, their children and their professional work Sharing out family tasks such as childcare and housework At each stage, the empirical research is placed in the context of the literature referenced in the first part, and of the wider debate on career and motherhood. Hard Labour is essential reading for students and academics in sociology, family policy, family studies, women’s or gender studies and the sociology of management/employment.

This text examines the changes in family practices and paid work in the 21st century. Its main focus is highly qualified working mothers with very young children, but also takes into account the views of fathers.

This very impressive Handbook takes established research topics about women in management and treats them in fresh and novel ways. The chapters are intellectually interesting, sound, and provocative, and meet the editors aspiration to stimulate high quality research on women s experiences in work organizations. I recommend it highly. Jean M. Bartunek, Boston College, US This comprehensive Handbook presents specially commissioned original essays on the societal roles and contexts facing women in business and management, the specific career and work life issues of women in these fields, organizational processes affecting women, and the role of women as leaders in business and management. The essays shed light on the extant structures and practices of society and organizations that constrain or facilitate women s representation, treatment, quality of life, and success. Despite decades of ongoing inquiry and increasing interest, research on women in business and management remains a specialized field without mainstream acceptance within business and management disciplines. The Handbook presents the current state of knowledge about women in business and management and specifies the directions for future research likely to be most constructive for advancing the representation, treatment, quality of life, and success of women who work in these fields. It provides the foundations for improved societal and organizational structures, policies, and relational practices affecting all in business and management. Thus, by enhancing the knowledge base that improves the work and life situations of women, it suggests ways to elevate the societal and organizational systems for all. The Handbook will be an essential reference source for recent advances in research and theory, informing both scholars of organization studies, gender, diversity, and feminism; human resource specialists; and educators of and consultants to business organizations and management.

What does motherhood mean today? Drawing on interviews with new mothers and intergenerational chains of women in the same family, this exciting and timely book documents the transition to motherhood over generations and time. Exploring, amongst other things, the trend to later motherhood and the experience of teenage pregnancy, a compelling picture emerges. Becoming a mother is not only a profound moment of identity change but also a site of socio-economic difference that shapes women's lives.

The book provides a contemporary ‘snapshot’ of critical debate centred around cybercrime and related issues, to advance theoretical development and inform social and educational policy. It covers theoretical explanations for cybercrime, typologies of online grooming, online-trolling, hacking, and law and policy directions. This collection draws on the very best papers from 2 major international conferences on cybercrime organised by UCLAN. It is well positioned for advanced students and lecturers in Criminology, Law, Sociology, Social Policy, Computer Studies, Policing, Forensic Investigation, Public Services and Philosophy who want to understand cybercrime from different angles and perspectives.

This Handbook explores the opportunities and challenges of new technologies for innovating data collection and data analysis in the context of human resource management. Written by some of the world’s leading researchers in their field, it comprehensively explores modern qualitative research methods from good project design, to innovations in data sources and data collection methods and, finally, to best-practice in data analysis.

In this engaging and handy book, Gatrell and Swan provide both an insightful introduction and much-needed resource to the understanding of gender and diversity in management. Gender and Diversity in Management accessibly overviews the core issues of gender, race, sexuality, disability and diversity in management. In an area where there is often conflicting scholarship, this concise introduction assesses the key contemporary issues, and takes stock of the debates amongst scholars and practitioners. It will also be of great value to managers from a range of organizations, who seek a practical and up-to-date guide to contemporary thought and practice. Gender and Diversity in Management is designed for students on courses across a range of business and management subjects including Women in Management, Gender in Management, Equal Opportunities and Diversity, and Human Resource Management. It will also be of great value to managers from a range of organizations and sectors who wish to understand better the debates, or who seek a practical and up-to-date guide to contemporary thought and practice.

What is the relationship between women’s reproductive bodies and women’s productive work? How does women’s potential for maternity affect women’s workplace opportunity? How far can women ’choose’ and maintain their own embodied boundaries in relation to work and working practices? This fascinating and topical book evaluates the growing debate on gender, women’s bodies, and work. Through the lens of the body - and from a feminist perspective - Gatrell considers women’s work from two angles, the first conceptualizing the labour of maternity as women’s work, the second exploring the dynamics between women’s bodies and employment. The author suggests that maternity constitutes women’s work, with some women ‘expected’ to produce children, while others are criticised for giving birth. She calls for the re-conceptualization of pregnancy, birth and breastfeeding as forms of labour – asserting that mothers are required to perform particular forms of body work in order to comply with ideals of ‘good’ mothering and norms of the workplace. The book observes that these are conflicting requirements, which place irreconcilable demands on women and constrain women’s choice. At the heart of Embodying Women’s Work is the idea that women’s bodies are central to gendered power relations, and remain a negotiated site of power between men and women within late modern society. The book considers women’s bodies in the context of different forms of paid work, discussing how far women remain at an economic disadvantage in comparison with male workers. Embodying Women’s Work is of key interest for students and academics of sociology, social welfare and women’s studies.

Current maternity policy advocates choice and control for women in maternity care, and promotes women as active childbirth consumers and decision-makers. However, evidence that women receive true choice within contemporary maternity services is lacking, and continued and pervasive barriers to choice continue to have profound consequences for many. Choice, Control and Contemporary Childbirth explores the narrative childbirth experiences of a group of women, outlining current policy and providing an overview of the relevant discourses to which women are exposed when making choices for maternity care. This book is unique in presenting narratives that reveal varying identities for women across their maternity exerience, illustrating how maternity choices are simulataneously promised and constrained. It provides practitioners, service providers and policymakers in maternity care, and all those with an interest in birth provision, with profound insights into both women's experiences of childbirth and how choices can be better facilitated in future. 'Maternal choice and control are a challenge in contemporary society, with the changing demography of the population, the rising birth rate and financial constraints. Collecting this diverse information in one publication is timely and an invaluable resource for the practising and academically active midwives, obstetricians and health service managers.' - From the Foreword by Tina Lavender

This book explores men's ambiguous relationship with intimate caring work within a context where carefree and nurturing expectations for men are competing for influence. For men, to be more involved carers clashes with commonly valued expectations of them as men and this book analyses how men confront this contradictory expectation.