This multidisciplinary course will draw from research in psychology, sociology, demography, and economics to examine the conditions shaping Americas working families, and the public policies that can help improve the quality of parent and child well-being in working families. A major focus will be on the intersection between parental work, family processes, and child development. Among other topics, we will examine the growing population of working mothers with young children, the organization of family life in working households, the use and effects of non-parental child care, welfare reform and the low-wage labor market, the emergence of a 24/7 economy, the effects of job loss and unemployment on parent and child well-being, and the availability and utilization of paid family leave and other public policies to support working families. We will spend some time discussing theories of child development, parenting, and family processes, and we will consider different methodological approaches to research at the intersection of parental work, family life, and child development.
