The workings of the household - Lydia Morris

This book examines the organization of domestic life in the contextof recent economic change. Lydia Morris argues that relationshipswithin the household can only be understood with reference to thesocial and economic environment in which it is located. Through ananalysis of economic changes in post-war Britain and the UnitedStates, the author examines the structure of labour markets,systems of welfare and local social networks. She charts thetheoretical positions which have been developed with respect to theconnection between the household and the labour market. Aspects ofthis link include male unemployment, the significance of femaleemployment, the significance of role reversal, the organization ofdomestic labour, the management of household finance and theposition of young people in the household.

Finally, the author examines welfare provision and access toemployment generally in order to assess their effects on theorganization of the household. This highly original work offers anew approach to the study of the 'household', shedding new light ongender relations and the structure and processes of the labourmarket.