How can WOHM spend as much time as SAHM
Find a Conversation
How can WOHM spend as much time as SAHM
| Thu, 04-10-2003 - 10:49pm |
I read somewhere on this board a post that stated that studies
show that WOHM's spend almost as much time with their children
as SAHM's. I've never seen the studies before and I don't think
it matters as far as what kind of parent you are but I don't see
how that makes sense. If your children are in school maybe but
if you have infants or toddlers and you SAH naturally you would spend
more time with them. I used to work but now I SAH and I definitely
spend more time with my children now than I would if I still WOH.
Like I said, not trying to debate how much the extra time matters as to
quality of parenting, it only matters to me since I want it. But I just
want to see how this can be possible and see how the studies are figuring
time. I thought that many SAHM's were like me, staying home because we
want more time with our children than we would have if we were working
outside the home 40 hours a week or more.
show that WOHM's spend almost as much time with their children
as SAHM's. I've never seen the studies before and I don't think
it matters as far as what kind of parent you are but I don't see
how that makes sense. If your children are in school maybe but
if you have infants or toddlers and you SAH naturally you would spend
more time with them. I used to work but now I SAH and I definitely
spend more time with my children now than I would if I still WOH.
Like I said, not trying to debate how much the extra time matters as to
quality of parenting, it only matters to me since I want it. But I just
want to see how this can be possible and see how the studies are figuring
time. I thought that many SAHM's were like me, staying home because we
want more time with our children than we would have if we were working
outside the home 40 hours a week or more.
Latest from the board
- Do you think that SAHDs are stigmatized? 2
- Family Friendly Professional Organizations 6
- Opt out or left out? 430
- Gender wage gap 5
- Women Not Taking Full Maternity Benefits 2
- How do moms make money at part-time? 59
- Why does MIL have to hide behind lies 10
- Do you think that long paternity leave is unrealistic? 86
- Yahoo Expands Maternity Benefits 383
- Parent Ethnotheories: How Americans Parent 9
Memeber Support
Visit our Member Support area or browse the iVillage Help forum
| Q: | Where can I change my password? |
| A: | Log in, go to Edit My Preferences, and click the Account tab. Make and save your changes. |
Pages
However, when talking about specifics, I would guess that maybe some FTWOHPs do spend close to the same amount of time with their children as SAHPs do. There are lots of factors to take into account, such as bedtimes, naptimes, school (even preschool), hours worked, split schedules, etc.
In general though, most parents who work FT work an 8-5 position, or close to it, which doesn't leave alot of time with your kids in the evenings if your child goes to bed around 8-9pm like most kids do....especially if you have a long commute.
Okmrsmommy-36, CPmom to DD-16 and DS-14
Linda
Linda - wife, mother, grandmum &nb
Also it is not just comparing time that the parent is not working but time actually spent with the child. Your child is takng a nap that is not parent time, the kid is playing with friend that is not parent time, the child is at pre-school that is not parent time.
I was a SAHM for 12 years but once my kids became independent enough to play on their own the parent time went way down.
For an example of how the time difference is not even 40 hours with an infant lets go back about 20 years to a typical day in my house. My DH WOH, I am a SAHM and DD1 is 4 months old.
DH leaves for work at 6:45 and arrives home at 4:15 so he spends a total of 8.5 hours out of the home.
DD get up at 8:00, she naps from 10-11 and then again from 1-3. So I spend an additional 5 hours and 15 minutes per day with her.
So the weekly average is 26 hours and 15 minutes not 40 hours.
Edited 4/11/2003 7:36:15 AM ET by texigan
Over the course of an entire 18-year span when the parent is responsible for the child, including all the weekends, vacations, school days, evenings, and so on and so forth, SAHM's spend an AVERAGE of XXX minutes per day more with their children than WOHM's do. Lots more when they are infants. Not so much more when they are older.
It doesn't have anything to do with how much time you personally spend with your personal infant this day or this week.
<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />
on many factors. Everyone's commute, workday and flexibility is different.
Does it mean:
Quality time--all your attention is on the child or
Just in the same house---child plays, while you do housework, bills, cook,chatboard(on computer), etc.
Just being home with the children is not actually spending time. So to figure out how much time is spent, it should be stated as how much "quality time" is spent with the child.
Speaking from my experience, just as it was stated in another post here, when the child does thing independently, that time decreases.
I am a WOHM, I drop my daughter off at her God-grandmother's house at 7:15am. I pick her back up at 4:30pm. From the time I pick her up, she gets my undivided attention until her dad gets home around 7:30pm, he takes her then while I shower for the night. She gets put to bed at (8:30-9pm). Cooking gets done while I feed and talk to to her. I don't spend a lot of stove time in the kitchen because I bake my meats instead of frying, so it allows less kitchen time.
Some SAHM may be home, but think about it, they have to cook, clean, run errands, do bills, fold laundry, do laundry, iron some clothes, and some chat on the computer. So in between the hours of the child awakening in the morning and going to bed, the mother most of the time only spends probably about the same amount of *quality time* a WOHM spends with her child. And let's not forget if they have more than 1 child. If they have school kids, then they also have homework to look over and help with along with getting the school clothes ready forthe next day as well as baths. So again attention is split up amongst all of them.
Yes, there may be some events a WOHM may miss as seeing it first because it may happen while they're at work, but it doesn't matter who sees it first, so ong as it's seen and experienced at some time, which would be in just a few hours. A WOHM may miss just seeing their cjild throughout the day. But as far as *quality time*, I feel it's about the same.
Unless the SAHM doesn't have anything to do while thei at home but just spend time with the child. Maybe they have a housekeeper, a driver, a private shopper, an accountant for bill managing, a personal cook, a private tutor. I don't know, maybe. But if not, the time is about the same.
NOTE: This is just *MY* observation.
Pages