New Approaches to the Study of Work-Family Balance in Spain

Studies in the sociology of the family have noted an evident change in family typologies in Spain. What is less evident is how family policy has adapted to the demands and needs of the new families. It is accepted in the academic world that family policies are a central component of the welfare state, due to the potential they have to give continuity to the traditional model of family and gender relations or, on the contrary, to adapt public policies to a changing social and family reality.

In this presentation, we will provide a critical review of the ideological and socio-economic foundations that have underpinned family and work-life balance policies in Spain, as well as the current state of family work-family balance policies developed over the last decade in Spain from a feminist perspective. On the other hand, an attempt will be made to document empirically how gender stereotypes associated with care and therefore with work-family balance are conditioned by the socio-economic stratification of families, the type of family and the orientation of family policies. This is relevant in analytical terms because the ability of individuals to appropriate the opportunities offered by family policies depends on their socio-economic position and family type, as family policies are biased in their design. Policies create the context for the redistribution of resources but in most cases do not take into account the differential appropriation that individuals make of those resources based on their socio-economic position and gender role stereotypes. The aim of this presentation is to document empirically how this differential appropriation is produced in work-family balance strategies developed in a context of cultural, redistributive and socio-economic inequality.