The Working Parent Dilemma: How to Balance the Responsibilities of Children and Careers

fs4To discover how children of employed parents fare and what their attitudes are, Grollman (a Massachusetts rabbi, lecturer and writer on family issues) and Sweder (a child development specialist and teacher) interviewed 1000 youngsters from two-job families. While many children covered in this nationwide study recognize the economic need for two incomes and the easing of stress that extra money provides, others complain that they are lonely and afraid and that parents, especially fathers, neglect them and give them too much responsibility. The authors emphasize the importance of parents sharing work experience with children, and of close parent-school ties. Among the book's helpful suggestions, many relate to safety precautions at home and outside, criteria for care givers, TV watching, etc. Advice given here on how to prepare a child to be alone at home, which includes handling emergencies and illness, is most pertinent for millions of ""latch-key'' children. First serial to Working Woman. (February 15)