Sociology 1448/8448: Working Women

Fall 1997, University of Pittsburgh
MWF 3:00 pm - 3:50 pm CL 302

Professor: Lisa D. Brush
Office: 2J28 Forbes Quadrangle
Office hours: W 11:00 am to 12:30 and by appointment
Telephone and voicemail: (412) 648-7595
Email: Ask Dr. Brush

URL for syllabus in this course:
http://www.pitt.edu/~lbrush/worksyl-97.html
URL for list of texts in this course:
http://www.pitt.edu/~lbrush/workbooks.html
URL for bibliography of course pack:
http://www.pitt.edu/~lbrush/workbib-97.html

Type or paste the above addresses on the location line in Netscape or other Web browser to access the electronic version of this syllabus.

COURSE DESCRIPTION AND OBJECTIVES

This is an advanced undergraduate course in feminist economic sociology. In accordance with the course listing, much of the course will look at women and waged work. However, the course is broader in its approach than just "working women." We will interrogate the role of political economy in perpetuating male dominance (that is, creating "gender") and in reinforcing race, class, and international hierarchies. This means, among other things, that we will also be studying the construction of masculinity in workplace settings, and we will be looking closely at the interactions between waged work and unpaid work as they shape women's experience and relationships between men and women. In the process, students will explore a variety of research methods in economic sociology. Thus, the course seeks to equip students to investigate in considerable detail the theory, methods, and substance of feminist political economy through a focus on gender and work.

REQUIREMENTS

Participation

This is an advanced undergraduate course. You are expected to learn from every possible source -- from your readings, your peers, your life experience, your professor.

Discussion

Participating in discussions is one of the best ways to learn. You are expected to contribute your insights to the class. The culture of the class will, I hope, be a congenial one for self-expression. I will work to maintain such a culture by swiftly countering displays of contempt and by practicing principles of pedagogical equity to the extent possible. I cannot help you learn if you do not participate in discussion, however. Doing excellent written work is not enough to demonstrate adequate performance in an advanced university course. I will therefore call on people -- at random -- to participate in discussion. Preparation is obviously paramount. Whatever you do, don't just sit there. Say anything you can defend against reasoned argument. Treat your colleagues' contributions with respect (which means taking them seriously and challenging them as well as extending basic courtesy).

Attendance and Q-Cards

In order to participate actively in discussion, you should prepare the assigned readings before class begins. To help organize your participation and preparation, and to allow you to help set the agenda for discussion, you are required to maintain a collection of Q-Cards. On a file card (I will provide these), write your name (along with any nickname) on one side. On the obverse, keep a neatly-written record of key questions about the readings. Date each question and be sure to give a specific page reference. You may ask questions of fact, context, clarification -- anything that gives articulate form to your curiosity and engagement with the text. Take for granted that this will get easier as we go along. Also assume that if your Q-Card is drawn, you may have to elaborate the question as well as suggest a tentative answer.

At the beginning of every class session, I will collect the Q-Cards, which we will use to shape the discussion (I will call at random on people from the submitted questions). I will take attendance by checking the Q-Cards. This means you will need at least two cards "in circulation" at any given time (one to leave with me and the other to have with you as you read). Over the course of the semester, you are allowed three "passes" -- you may withdraw from the question pool (by not handing in a question, in which case you will be considered absent) or decline to answer when I call on you. Attendance is mandatory: If you have more than five classes for which I have no recorded question (either because you "passed" or because you were physically absent), you will automatically receive an "F" in the course.

In addition to reading the assigned materials (see schedule of readings below), participating in discussion, and maintaining a set of Q-Cards, everyone enrolled in this course is expected to complete the following:

Tests

The learning you do in this course will be assessed in part through two tests (worth a total of fifty percent of your final grade). Tests will be in class (on Monday, September 29, and Wednesday, October 29). The format will be mixed (multiple choice, identifications, etc.). There will be no make-ups for these tests. Test responses should draw on materials from lectures, readings, class discussions, your on-going research project (if applicable), and life experience (again, if applicable).

Research project

Forty percent of your final grade will come from a research project you complete and hand in by the end of the final exam period at the conclusion of the semester. Either choose one of the following or consult with me during office hours about an idea of your own. Either way, you must hand in a brief statement of your choice of project by the third week of classes (Friday, September 12). A statement of your research problem and research design are due Wednesday, October 1. You must be prepared to present and hand in a preliminary summary of findings by Monday, November 24. Final drafts should be typed or word-processed, double-spaced, in 12-pt font, with one-inch margins, and should be about 3000 words. No late projects will be accepted; papers are due, in lieu of a final examination, by 10:00 am on Tuesday, December 9. You will make a formal, 5-minute presentation to the class on either Wednesday, December 3, or Friday, December 5.

Research Projects Options

Collect and analyze cultural representations of gender at work (for example, advertisements in magazines, songs about working people, movies about people on the job). Do this in some comparative way (men and women, change over time, variation across countries, or "traditional" versus "nontraditional" occupations, for example). Report your results -- including an account of your method of collecting and analyzing your data -- in a 10-page final paper.
Interview four people about their work experiences. Analyze their accounts for insights into "gender at work" in terms of any of the themes of the course (sexual harassment, rewards of labor, discrimination, wage gap, combining wage work and family, etc.). Focus on comparison: you might want to be sure you have two men and two women, one of each in a "traditional" versus "nontraditional" occupation, or perhaps you could compare women who differ in terms of race, age, or occupation. Report your results -- including an account of your method of collecting and analyzing your data -- in a 10-page final paper.
Write a workplace ethnography based on your participation and observations of your own current or very recent employment experience. Analyze not just your own position in the work organization but the gender politics/economics of as much of the organization as you are able to observe/research. Present your description and analysis of your workplace in a 10-page final paper.
Collect, analyze, and critique any set of statistics about gender and the workforce (unemployment rate, occupational segregation, wage gap, unionization trends, labor force participation rate, etc.). Compare: international, national, regional, local; race; time series; etc. Report your results -- including an account of your method of collecting and analyzing your data -- in a 10-page final paper.

Have a brilliant idea of your own? Just check it out with me. I am also very open to the idea of group problem-solving projects; if, for example, one or more of your classmates work for the same employer you do, you could do the ethnography together, or you could analyze and propose a solution to a problem women face in your workplace. Or you might address working conditions at Pitt.

Remember: Your final project is an opportunity to demonstrate what you have learned in this course. Be sure your final paper -- driven by your empirical research -- is framed around issues, concepts, or problems from the readings and class discussions.

EVALUATION

Grading will be criteria-based, not norm-based, and there will be no curve. That is, if you demonstrate (through your accumulated points on the tests, the final paper, and participation in discussions) mastery of 90 percent or more of the material (that is, accumulate 90 or more points), you will earn an "A." To receive a "B," you must demonstrate mastery of at least 80 percent of the material (that is, accumulate at least 80 points); for a "C," at least 70 percent (that is, accumulate at least 70 points); for a "D," at least 55 percent (that is, accumulate at least 55 points). If you fail to accumulate at least 55 points (thus indicating you have mastered at least 55 percent of the material), you will receive an "F" for a final grade. Students who earn seven (7) points above the minimum cut-off for a given grade will receive a "+" grade. For example, if you accumulated 77 points, you will receive a "C+." Remember: If you have more than five "passes" (including absences), you will automatically receive a failing grade in the course.

Your final grade will be calculated using the following:

Tests: 2 @ 25 points each
Final project and presentation: 40 points
Preparation and participation: 10 points

Special Note for "W" Students

This course may, with special permission, be taken to fulfill the "W" requirement for Sociology majors. To receive "W" credit, students will:

substitute written abstracts for Q-Cards for six of the weeks prior to Test 2 on October 29.
write final papers of approximately 6000 words (about 20 pages).

Please see me if you have questions about this option.

COURSE MATERIALS

I have ordered a set of books at the University of Pittsburgh Book Center. They are required reading for this course, and we will be reading them in their entirety. I have ordered paperback editions. If you find it prohibitively expensive to purchase all the books, try to find some of them in the library (many are available at Hillman).

Assigned readings also include selections collected in a Course Pack, available at the Copy Cat Copy Center on Forbes Avenue. Some are chapters from books I deemed too expensive or specialized to read in their entirety and others are articles from sociology journals. The Course Pack is well-produced, convenient, and reasonably-priced.

SCHEDULE OF READINGS

All readings should of course be completed for the week assigned, as Q-Cards are due at the beginning of class. Drop this course if you cannot keep up with this reading schedule. Be sure to bring the readings for the week to class, as we will often refer to the texts.

August 27-29 -- Course introduction.: Read: "Introduction" and "A Conceptual Framework" -- that is, Part I -- in Amott and Matthaei.
September 3-5 (No classes Monday, September 1) -- The Plight of Poor Women.: Read: Sidel (all).
September 8-12 -- Histories of Women's Work.: Read: Part II of Amott and Matthaei. RESEARCH PROJECT CHOICE DUE.
September 15-19 -- She Works Hard For The Money.: Read: Part III in Amott and Matthaei; Dellinger and Williams in reader; Browne in the reader.
September 22-26 -- Gender, Work, and Welfare.: Read: Ridgeway in reader; Edin and Lein in reader.
September 29-October 1 (No class Friday, October 3) -- TEST ONE on Monday, September 29. Problem statements/research designs due.: No new readings.
October 6-8 (No class Friday, October 10) -- Domestic Work.: Read: Romero (all).
October 13-17 -- Women in Nontraditional jobs.: Read: Excerpts from Martin in reader. Yoder and Aniakudo article in reader.
October 20-24 -- Men doing "Women's Work.": Read: Excerpts from Williams in reader.
October 27-31 -- "I don't wanna work, I just wanna bang on these drums all day.": Read: Hamper (all). TEST TWO on Wednesday, October 29.
November 3-7 -- Working Girls.: Read: Excerpts from Delacoste and Alexander in reader.
November 10-14 -- The Global Assembly Line.: Read: Excerpts from Rowbotham and Mitter in reader.
November 17-21 -- Working for Change.: Read: Excerpts from Baxandall and Gordon reader.
November 24 -- Preliminary findings reports due (No class November 26 and November 28).: No new readings.
December 1-5 -- In-class presentations.: No new readings.

Final drafts of RESEARCH PROJECTS DUE in lieu of final examination (hand in before 10:00 am Tuesday, December 9, 1997). Presentations of finding summaries may continue into the final examination period, as well (8:00 am to 10:00 am).