Road Winds Uphill All the Way: Gender, Work, and Family in the United States and Japan

In a time of societal transition, women and men around the globe struggleto combine careers and family in new ways. However, conventional work and familystructures and power imbalances between women and men often reinforce traditionalgender stereotypes in both home and office.In an effort to understand the roots ofgender inequality, Myra Strober and Agnes Miling Kaneko Chan conducted an extensivesurvey of the 1981 graduates of Stanford and Tokyo Universities--parallelpopulations in historically very different cultures. First-hand comments from thegraduates are combined with quantitative analyses for a lively examination of thecareer and family choices of these highly educated women and men. Contrasting therealities of household responsibilities, childcare, and discrimination in theworkplace with the graduates' original expectations, the authors find that the roadto more egalitarian work and family arrangements winds uphill all the way.Theauthors take a fresh look at the widespread belief that U.S. gender equity is lightyears ahead of Japan's. The elite group of Japanese and Americans in their studydescribe surprisingly similar experiences as they faced the job market and beganraising families. In both countries, more balanced gender roles will requireimproved public and business policies, individual strategies, and collectiveaction. he authors take a fresh look at the widespread belief that U.S. gender equity is light years ahead of Japan's.…