Preface: Women and Work: Where Are We, Where Did We Come From, and Where Are We Going?

The obstacles faced by today's women in the workplace bear out the truth in the old adage that history repeats itself. The maternal wall, the ideal worker, and the ideal homemaker beliefs are current iterations of the century-old tendency to mark women as suited for the home and men as suited for the workplace ( Albee & Perry, 1998 ; Coltrane, 1996 ; Mintz, 2000 ). The belief that the sexes are vastly different—with different needs, values, and abilities—has been a hallmark throughout the history of both women and men in both the workplace and the home ( Ferree, 1990 ; Williams, 2000 ). Generally speaking, these beliefs have been detrimental to all concerned ( Barnett & Rivers, 2004 ).