Pynchme,
I have never in any post said anything negative about women. This is very different to the aware and loving Eva Cox, who believes the best thing a male can do is commit suicide. The reason why she remains employed in a university, is because of the male-hate philosophy of so many of those universities.

The largest study ever undertaken in Australia into what women want regards work is this one.

http://www.latrobe.edu.au/publichealth/family_studies/2005papers/Drago,Tseng,Wooden_pp.46-61_Abstract.pdf

"For dual-earner couples with children, men average approximately 20 hours more paid work per week than women, a difference that would only decline to 18 hours per week if PREFERED paid hours were realised."

When given a preference or choice, women elect to work ½ the hours of men. Similar occurs in couples with no dependant children. Men aren’t pushing women out of paid work, as inferred by so many aware and loving feminists. Women are preferring to work less paid work than men. This leaves men in the position of having to pay most of the bills, as well as their child support.

Although this was the biggest study undertaken in Australia, I have never known a feminist to refer to it.

Couldn'r agree more with Eva

It's time for males to begin leaving the workforce and spending more time at home. Women have demonstrated that they are much better than men in important work areas. Like complex decision making, working under pressure, and communication. Women who stay at home and raise their children are wasting their natural gifts. They should be encouraged to join the workforce and leave the children to someone else.

HRS,

You're missing the point - that paid work is not the only work of any value. The authors to whom you refer may be easier to understand.

In their discussion paper the following year (2006) the
authors state:

"Men were largely unresponsive to these events, and indeed to most life events. However, they were prone to reducing their hours following marital separation, and increasing those hours post-divorce, perhaps reflecting incentives around divorce law. Further, men two years post-widowhood tended to reduce both their preferred hours and labor force participation. Finally, a majority of men preferred full retirement, with others preferring continuation of
employment for a year or two."

and

"For both practitioners and policy-makers, our most troubling findings concern the role of children in women’s and men’s preferences. Women exhibit clear preferences for flexibility
around commitments to children while men do not. New fathers may be spending more time with their children, but they are not seeking to take that time from their employers. Therefore, efforts to improve access to hours flexibility may serve to isolate the women who
would likely use the policies. Men’s behavior and preferences would need to change to alter this dynamic."

Downloadable here:
http://ideas.repec.org/p/iza/izadps/dp2404.html

pynchme,

'our most troubling findings concern the role of children in women’s and men’s preferences.'
Hahaha. That's so troubling that men and women are choosing traditional roles, and defying the feminists.

Why do we need to 'alter this dynamic'? HRS' post shows women don't want to. The study also says Men don't want to. Who is it that wants this?

Usual Suspect,

You need to read the studies - as I pointed out, the study referred to by HRS does not say what he purports it to say (provided a link in my post).

Two salient points that can be synthesized from the information are:

1. Women who work (as women have always done) continue to be more consciously aware than men are of the needs of the children. That means that women are seeking more flexible work arrangements, including shrter hours (as one option) to accommodate family needs.

2. The work that women do, whether paid or unpaid, remains undervalued and under recognized. Yet the fact that women continue to do it (such as, caring for children and for other relatives) enables men to exercise choice and mobility in the workplace.

Btw if you read the discussion by the authors of the study referred to by HRS; they also point out that at certain times men prefer shorter hours too. You can read it to find out why :)

HRS/Timkins: << I have never in any post said anything negative about women >>

Yeah right, Timmy. And before you ask, I have no intention of trawling back through your odious posting history to provide examples that everybody else is aware of but you.

You are one of the most misogynist posters to OLO, both under your current moniker and in your previous incarnations as Timkins and Timithy.