Society has created a process of gendering in which individuals are taught specific tasks based on their biological sex. When two homosexual women get together and decide to start a family, they face a new process of regendering, where one spouse typically relearns the traditional gender tasks of the opposite sex. Lesbian couples do not resist the regendering of divisions of paid and unpaid labor within the context of biological and nonbiological parenting. Inevitably, one spouse will become the primary parent, taking care of household tasks and most of the childcare, while the other spouse works full time, supporting the family and most of its expenses (Downing & Goldberg, 2011). More often than not, the spouse that chooses to cut back on
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Whether a couple is made up of one man and one women, two women, or two men, gender socialization is inevitable because of society’s strict demands. Even when domestic labor is perceived as equal among the couple, one spouse must cut back on paid employment in order to care for the basic needs of their child. Lesbian mothers that take on the role of primary caretaker do not perceive the unequal divisions of paid labor as stressful (Downing & Goldberg, 2011). Many couples interviewed in this study expressed gratitude toward their traditional gendered behaviors and were content with their differentiation of parental …show more content…
When lesbian couples undergo the process of regendering, one partner cuts back on paid employment to focus their time on childcare, while the other partner works full-time, bringing in most of the family’s income. While society views this differentiation of tasks as a social construction of gender, lesbian couples claim to divide these tasks based on personal preference. Oftentimes, the primary caretaker is considered the biological mother because she embodies the traditional notions of intensive mothering (Downing & Goldberg, 2011). Although the division of labor is still unequal among lesbian couples, they are more likely to view the inequality and equitable than heterosexual couples are (Downing & Goldberg, 2011). The social construction of gender within a family unit is unavoidable, even if the process of regendering takes
Whether a couple is made up of one man and one women, two women, or two men, gender socialization is inevitable because of society’s strict demands. Even when domestic labor is perceived as equal among the couple, one spouse must cut back on paid employment in order to care for the basic needs of their child. Lesbian mothers that take on the role of primary caretaker do not perceive the unequal divisions of paid labor as stressful (Downing & Goldberg, 2011). Many couples interviewed in this study expressed gratitude toward their traditional gendered behaviors and were content with their differentiation of parental …show more content…
When lesbian couples undergo the process of regendering, one partner cuts back on paid employment to focus their time on childcare, while the other partner works full-time, bringing in most of the family’s income. While society views this differentiation of tasks as a social construction of gender, lesbian couples claim to divide these tasks based on personal preference. Oftentimes, the primary caretaker is considered the biological mother because she embodies the traditional notions of intensive mothering (Downing & Goldberg, 2011). Although the division of labor is still unequal among lesbian couples, they are more likely to view the inequality and equitable than heterosexual couples are (Downing & Goldberg, 2011). The social construction of gender within a family unit is unavoidable, even if the process of regendering takes