Material Life of the Household

During the last fifty years the traditional view of the American family has changed significantly.  There are many reasons contributing to the changing family dynamics that include larger percentages of women in the workplace, increases in single-parent homes, and younger generations waiting longer to engage in a marital relationship.  Today, according to Hawkins and Mothersbaugh (2013), American households follow much more complex and varied cycles….Therefore, researchers have developed several models of household life cycle (HLC).  All are based on age and marital status of the adult members of the household and the presence and age of children” (p. 189).

The Spanish welfare state belongs to the Mediterranean regime. As in other Southern European countries, Spain’s single most characteristic trait is the crucial role played by the family as an institution of welfare production and distribution of income and services. Within families the role of Spanish 'superwomen' has been pivotal, as they have often cared particularly for children or older relatives at the expense of erratic careers or full withdrawal from the labour market. The paper examines welfare developments in Spain in the years around the turn of the millenium. Extra sacrifices made by Spanish ‘superwomen’ allowed not only a greater degree of gender equality for future generations and a general climate of social cohesion and economic prosperity. They also challenged the political agenda on how Spanish welfare should be structured. New social risks, most of which crosscut family life (care for children and elderly, young unemployed or young working parents) have been most affected. A serious vacuum in provision emerged as the hyperactivity of the cohort of ‘superwomen’ is gradually vanishing.