Comments on: Another Pew Study

By: Gavin Guillaume

Gavin Guillaume — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 19:28:06 +0000

Julie, that outlines one of the problems with the study (no breakdown on numbers of children and their ages). It wouldn’t have to be that explicit, but I think that comparing 1-2 children and 3+, and then looking at children 0-10, 10-15, and 15-18 would be interesting.

Then again, I’m a sucker for a lot of data points.

By: Jacob

Jacob — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 19:15:09 +0000

“The parenting ratings also vary by level of education; mothers with more education tend to be harder on themselves than are mothers with less education.”

Lesson learned: Want to feel better about being a mom, don’t go to school.

By: KyleM

KyleM — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 19:05:18 +0000

22. Alot of people tie self worth into their careers. Not me, but lots do.

By: jjohnsen

jjohnsen — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 18:53:34 +0000

I’d prefer not to work full-time either, how is this any kind of surprise? Mother, Father, whatever, who wants to be working full time? The surprising part is 1 out of 5 wants to work full time.

By: Ray

Ray — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 18:44:21 +0000

Mr. Clark, for the sake of my and my wife’s sanity, I would limit it with our family to an interesting mix of telecommuting.

By: MrClark

MrClark — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 18:19:40 +0000

#10, I like that thought. I would love to really show my son how to work and be a greater part of his education. Sounds like an interesting mix of homeschooling and telecommuting?

By: Joshua Madson

Joshua Madson — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 17:36:36 +0000

Mike,

I’ve always felt the same way. There must be a way to get both parents to be able to work and be at home more.

By: Julie M. Smith

Julie M. Smith — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 16:55:47 +0000

Gavin, all I saw was that the mother had to have at least one child under 18.

By: Gavin Guillaume

Gavin Guillaume — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 16:55:02 +0000

(The study does assume children are under 18, but a Starbucks barista with 3 children under 5, and an accountant with a doctor husband with one 17-year-old, are going to have different opinions on this…)

By: Gavin Guillaume

Gavin Guillaume — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 16:52:17 +0000

i saw this and I’d expected some treatment by the Mormon Housewives, but apparently this isn’t up their alley.

Anyway…

Re TrailerTrash (5) – Assuming the questionnaire presented in the graphic in the article accurately represents how this was posed, I think you can dismiss the assumption that this is a “do you like money” question. It reads to me that the question was “what’s ideal for you” and then presented options. 31% in 1997 said full-time work and 21% said part-time.

Now, that said …

There’s absolutely nothing in the study, to me, that suggests the *ages* and *numbers* of the children, and nothing that tells us the current salary and marital status of the mother. I think those are important points. Also — were the SAME mothers in 1997 queried? I think it would be fascinating to see the same people’s opinions, 10 years later.

I don’t have many proposals on how to fix the sampling, but the note on how it depended predominantly on telephone surveys (how many working professionals in fulfilling professions have the time or inclination to do a telephone survey — as opposed to the harried mother who doesn’t screen her calls and vents on her job?) and minorities. I’m more of an amateur statistician, but this does raise questions.