Microsoft Word Socialized Choices 31-12 pod docx

Chapter 5 - The social origins of Dutch mothers’ gender values and ideal family life 
143 
Kraaykamp, 2012;
 
Thompson, 1991
). I thus expect that religious mothers have 
more traditional general gender values and a more traditional conception of the 
ideal family life. The respondents were asked how often, aside from special 
occasions such as weddings and funerals, they attend religious gatherings 
nowadays: 1: every day; 2: more than once a week; 3: once a week; 4: at least 
once a week; 5: only on special religious days; 6: less often; 7: never. 53 per cent 
of the respondents replied never, and approximately 10 per cent attend religious 
gatherings once a week or more often. 
Partner.  Cohabiting mothers may be expected to be more in support of 
traditional values and personal ideals compared to single mothers, since they can 
rely financially on their partners. A career-oriented husband may work long work 
hours and leave the bulk of household responsibilities to his wife, causing her to 
adapt her personal view of her ideal family life to a more traditional family life, 
mainly to reduce feelings of dissonance (Festinger, Riecken, and Schachter, 1956; 
Kroska and Elman, 2009). Nonetheless, a mother with more traditional values and 
perception of the ideal family life may also be less likely to become a single 
mother compared to mothers with more egalitarian values and ideals. The 
relationship is thus perceived as reciprocal. The respondents were asked whether 
they lived together with a partner, whether married or unmarried (1: no; 2: yes). 
The vast majority of the sample, 87 per cent, lives together with a partner. 
Parents’ educational level. Based on social stratification theory, I control for 
the parental educational level.  From previous studies it is known that higher-
educated parents tend to transmit more liberal or progressive values (Sanders, 
1997). Therefore it is assumed that the higher the educational achievements of a 
respondent’s parents, the more egalitarian her gender values and her view of the 
ideal family life will be. The educational level of her parents is measured across 
five categories instead of the 6 categories which were used for the educational 
level of the mother herself (2 and 3 are merged into one category: secondary 
school). 
Table 12 gives an overview of the descriptives of both the dependent and the 
independent variables in the analysis. Table 13 gives the correlations between the 
variables included in the path model. 
 
 

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Socialized Choices - Labour Market Behaviour of Dutch Mothers 
144 
Table 12. Descriptives dependent and independent variables 
 N 
Minimum 
Maximum 
Mean 
Std. 
Deviation 
1.  General gender values 
834 
0 
0.80 
.506 
.137 
2.  Personal ideal family life 
930 
1 
3 
2.40 
.69 
3.  Level of education 
936 
1 
6 
3.73 
1.32 
4.  Attendance to religious gatherings  
833 
1 
7 
2.08 
1.453 
5.  Partner 935 
0 
1 
.87 
.333 
6.  Level of education respondent’s father 
863 
1 
5 
2.03 
.996 
7.  Level of education respondent’s mother 
837 
1 
5 
2.42 
1.18 
8.  Mother had a paid job when respondent 
was twelve 
935 0 
1  .30  .46 
9.  Age 935 
18 
64 
43.70 
8.337 
10.  Age squared/100 
935 
3.24 
40.96 
19.63 
7.39 
11.  Home oriented mother 
935 
0 
1 
.44 
.50 
12.  Work oriented mother 
935 
0 
1 
.28 
.45 
13.  Which proposition does apply to your 
mother most?  
206 1 
4  1,54 1,020 
14.  How did you mother experience the fact 
that she did not performed paid work? 
562 1 
5  1,86 1,380 
15.  A good education is important 
934 
0 
1 
.59 
.492 
16.  You have to carry out your full 
potential. 
934 0 
1  .24  .425 
17.  Caring for others is important 
934 0 
1  .32  .467 
18.  (Paid) work is above all fun. 
934 
0 
1 
.05 
.227 
19.  Through work you are valued by your 
social environment 
934 0 
1  .08  .270 
20.  You only should do what you really 
want 
934 0 
1  .29  .453 
21.  Work is above all a way to receive 
income 
934 0 
1  .15  .360 
22.  You have to work in order to be 
financially independent of others 
934 0 
1  .33  .471 
23.  You should work in order to contribute 
to society 
934 0 
1  .12  .323 
24.  When you don’t perform paid work, you 
are less worthwhile 
934 0 
1  .00  .057 
25.  Making a good career in important 
934 
0 
1 
.06 
.241 
26.  Motivated by people at work   
935 
0 
1 
.24 
.43 
27.  Motivated by teachers 
935 
1 
2 
1.13 
.33 
28.  Motivated to work by parents 
935 
0 
1 
.16 
.48 
29.  Motivated to work by friends 
935 
0 
1 
.07 
.26 
30.  Motivated to work by partner 
935 
0 
1 
.26 
.44 
Source: Data from questionnaires: ‘Politics and Values’, ‘Work and Schooling’, ‘Women and their 
social environment’, Liss Panel, Centerdata, University of Tilburg, November 2010. 
 
 

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