Talcott Parson's Sex Role Theory

One of the heaviest influences in American society is the economic system of capitalism, as it controls almost every aspect of everyday American life. Naturally, then, it makes sense that even though home lives of average Americans would seem to not have anything to do with capitalism, it is one of the main influences of how a home should be run. Talcott Parson’s “Sex role theory” defines the American way of organizing a home, with men working, women staying home and raising children, was the best way for a family to function within American society (Conley 289). There are defined roles for men, women and children in this system that don’t and shouldn’t vary from household to household. Parson’s felt this system worked best because it created the best way for a family’s finances to be stable, while also raising the next generation of cogs in the capitalist machine properly (Conley 289). What the sex role theory succeeded at doing was creating separate spheres for women and men to operate in. Women were exclusively in charge of the domestic end of the household, anything from cleaning the house to raising kids. Men were responsible for breadwinning so the house could operate at a healthy financial …show more content…
One of the problems women trying to work ran into was the concept of marriage bars, which is a residual effect of the sex role theory. As young women who are either recently married or unmarried tried to apply for a job, the potential employer would not hire them. This was because the employer thought that as soon as a woman had children she would leave that job to raise her kids, and that time, money and resources spent training her was