Darby Quave

Psychology of the Workplace- Debate Questions

December 5, 2017

1. Is this a women vs. men question? Can men have it all? Are there differences between women
and men as they approach this problem of having it all?

I dont believe its necessarily a women vs. men question. I think men have a difficult time
having it all as much as women. However, the difference comes from societal expectations and
views on family and work roles of women and men. In one of the articles, it talks about how both
genders have this conflict. However, women are more likely to say something about it while men
suffer through it. Men feel more pressure to be the breadwinner for the family and expect to
make sacrifices.

2. What about people across the entire range of the economic spectrum?

I think that women (and men) in the entire range of the economic spectrum suffer from
overwork, which leads to work-family conflict. However, I think they differ in terms of
extremity. Those working close to the poverty line, work just to survive and get paid very little
for it. The conflict lower class women have is more about how to keep a family alive, probably
less about how to be an involved parent. Looking at a middle-class worker versus a low-
income worker in terms of work-family conflict and having it all is not entirely comparable.

3. Should we make changes to the work environment to deal with work-life conflict? What would
they be?

Yes, there should be changes to the work environment to deal with work-life conflict. I think it
mostly comes with reducing the hours people work. Or even reducing the amount of time
employees are required to be in an office. There also should be better policies in place for time-
off, especially when it comes to family matters. Employers should encourage employees to make
time for family and try to reduce the stigma of putting family over work.

4. What about single people? What if you never marry and never have kids? Are you a part of
this conversation?
Yes, even without the responsibilities of a spouse or children, there are still many employees in
the US being overworked. There are barely enough hours in the day to do anything besides work,
especially if someone has a long commute. Single people suffer from long workdays, working on
the weekends, and sacrificing their personal lives for work lives.

5. Should this be a question of work-family balance or work-life balance?

I think it should be a question of both work-family balance and work-life balance. Like the
question before, single people also are harmed by overwork. It makes it hard to have a life
outside work and most likely leads to burnout. However, I think the issues of work-family is a
more important question because its creating a big conflict in how people see themselves.
Employers see themselves as parents and workers, this makes it hard to juggle both roles. It
makes employers choose between one or the other and have to make sacrifices in one area.

6. Bertrand Russell said, "....I want to say, in all seriousness, that a great deal of harm is being
done in the modern world by belief in the virtuousness of work..." What do you think about this
statement? Do we have an aversion to downtime?

Yes, I think the society we live in frowns upon and discourages downtime. Our society makes
us believe that we must be busy all the time and that downtime is a waste. This is very difficult
from other cultures. Many other cultures value downtime and are less worried about their
work. A big part of this is due to how much our culture values money and superficial things,
which makes people strive to overwork themselves to get paid more.

Women can have it all argument

- Women and men both have family conflicts with work, it just means that one spouse
must sacrifice more of there work
- having it all isnt even clearly defined but it is possibly for women to spend time with
both their family and on work, it just may not be the ratio they desire

Women cant have it all

- Women are stigmatized in both directions, for being not involved as a parent but also for
putting work first
- Women must either delay having kids or delay a career
- Women are frowned upon for talking too much about their kids or making time for them,
employers will easily choose a man to take her place