A new study from North Carolina State University and Duke University offers insights into the ways that education, work and motherhood shape the lives of women in the United States. In a longitudinal study of more than 8,100 women, the researchers found seven"pathways" that illustrate the way major life events can have long-term ripple effects.
For the study, researchers examined data from 8,101 women who participated in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, which is a nationally representative panel study that followed people in the United States from youth through adulthood. "We found that women's lives tend to take one of seven pathways, with six of those pathways broadly defined by when or if women become parents," Manzoni says."These pathways really underscore the extent to which specific life events, opportunities or constraints can shape later patterns in women's lives. However, it's important to recognize that there are notable nuances in the way women's lives end up unfolding in more ways than one.
"Much of this is informed by socioeconomic background and the resources that women have access to," says Manzoni."For example, the three college-centered pathways largely reflect the experiences of women who come from privileged socioeconomic backgrounds.