This week lecture cover two aspects of advanced technology, they are Work and Play. However, our presentation will have a larger focus on Work.Nowadays, most women participate in workforce, and advanced technology provides women to have a wider range of choice on where and when to work. The reading titled “The Normalization of Flexible Female Labor in the Information Economy”. The main focus of this article is to question the impact of flexible working economy for women as directing women to have family & work advance in society. When information communication technology is developed from day by day, the reading suggested us to look at how technology could cooperate with businesswoman. Besides it questions the impact of this kind of flexible working economy for women, re-think their participation in work force and the meaning of ‘work’.
There are some points that are important in this article which are dualities, second shift and flexibility. These key words have a very close relationship with technology and businesswomen.
Based on the content of lecture 1, dualities are just human’s construction that is forced upon us. Things are needed to be distinguish to the extremity meaning, for example, body/ mind, human/ machine or nature/ culture. However the existence of cyborg could break down the dualities, this consequence is much like the dualities between work and home. Because when technology allows people to choice when and when to work, the meaning of private and public is become blur when people choose to do their business at home.
For the ‘second shift’, it has a greater connection with working women. When Moms choose work from home, on one hand, they work, on the other hand, they have to take care of children or do the family work. This is so called ‘second shift’ which means they are having two jobs at the same.
Is it a real flexibility for women? Maybe not.
Because the women who choose work from home, people will think that they should also take care of children. In society, it is already assume women as the primary care-giver in family relationships. Therefore, the ‘choice’, the ‘flexibility’ are just to reinforce the practices of gender division of labor in family & society.
This assumption is always shown in advertising. The following video is an example - 'Netvigator home wireless':
What’s your opinion of the position of the Mom & Dad in the video?
You may discuss by starting think of below question:
1. What does “work” means in your mind? (when, where, what, who, how)
2. What are the differences between mom and dad? And how do you feel that?
3. Is technology helping women to be more self-determination? Are women now having more bargaining power to be what they want to be?
4. Does advanced technology change women identity in workplace? Can it be able to reconstruct the gender identity or make it worst?
5. When the moms are being symbolized as a “work at home mom” and deal with two jobs at the same time. What boundaries does it break down or blur?
6. What social attitudes towards gender roles does it produce?
By
Joey Wong
Ashley Wong
To reply to question 1- what does “work” means to me? I think work does not limit to time and place in nowadays as technology has advanced. Unlike in the old days, work cannot be brought to home as for the difficulty of transferring documents- things have to be centralized in a certain place. In the 20th century, computer and internet has been invented. People can easily keep a variety of documents in the computer, and they can access to the internet easily, getting all kinds of information. The easiness of information transferring has blurred the absolute borderline of “work” and “play”.
ReplyDeleteFor question 3, I think technology could help women to be more self-determinate. As mentioned, people can access to the internet and get all kinds of information, therefore, provide a chance for women to access to information without limitation. Comparing to the old days, certain information may be limited to gender, but as ones hardly be classified as male or female on the internet, they can express their view (relatively) freely. Take an example of my mother, her parents-in-law (my grandparents) do not like her to be enterprising; rather, they want them to be “a traditional woman” which her duty is to assist her husband in managing things even she may have an official work (with contract, not as a housewife). However, she did not give up to their disturbance. With the help of new developed technology and internet, she could have a chance to learn as much as she want, limitless. Knowledge is power. Thus, she gained the bargaining power from knowledge and could be the senior officer in her company.
If you ask me what does work means to me? Just like Jessica said it does not limited to time and place in this century anymore. Many things can be our job and working time can be so flexible. But this may not be a good thing to a mom because it does blur or break down the boundary when mother is a "work at home mom". I just assume the mom has a child, though she can set some rules or regulations to distinguish when is her working time but her child may not then easily mix two things up. That's why I think they can easily blur the line between office and home but I don't think SOHO which means small office home office is suitable for them. Also, in my opinion, if she brings the "office stuff" back home, to a certain extent, it would add more pressure on her because of the children and sidetracks her from doing her office work.
ReplyDeleteI totally agreed with Jessica and Bobo. In contemporary society, the concept of work is totally different from the past. Along with the development of technology, “work” can be happened anytime, anywhere. Sometimes I would have a feeling that whether all these advanced technologies are really good for us? There is no doubt that technologies allow us get the latest information from all around the world. By an IPhone or Blackberry, we can keep ourselves linked to the Internet, or in other words, it lets your boss link to you. However, this kind of life-mode also blurred the boundary between work and leisure. I do not think it is a good life-style to human being. This will make people always under a stressful mood and this may be one of the reasons why so many people are having physiological problems.
ReplyDeleteI think technology has changed the traditional view on the role of women and mothers, especially in the Chinese society.
ReplyDeleteIn the past, women in family are stereotyped as housewife. They should take care of their children and concentrate on household duties.
With the development of society, female have more chances to receive education and acquire knowledge. In fact, more and more University graduates are women nowadays. There are a lot women playing important roles in their company.
With the popularization of computers and Internet, electronic devices provide more freedom of working class. Home office is quite common nowadays. As Jessica said in her comment, workers can now work at home.
It is possible for women to look after their children while they are working at home. Kids are no longer abandon at home while the parents are working in office. It seems that women can look after both family and work. However,I think more concentration on work will reduce the caring of children. I am wondering will the children be happy if they are growing up in the home office environment. It will be better if there is a clear division work and family.
The role of father and mother is different in the family. Women are more caring and careful, these elements are difficult to be seen in men.In my opinion, mother is more important than father in the family.
Thus, I think family planning is very important for couples. If the couples have to devote all their time for their careers, it will be better for them not to have kids.
I agree with Michael. Traditionally, women worked center around the home. Their role is taking care of her family and doing the housework. Yet, the development of technology has greatly changed the situation in the contemporary society.
ReplyDeleteTake my colleague as an example. She has two children in her family but they didn’t have a close relationship with each other. As my colleague always work over time and back home late, she doesn't spend time with her children. Sometimes, she even needs to continue the work by using the notebook at home. That really take her much private time. In contrast, her husband spends much more time with the children, so they are very close. Her children even said that they love father rather than mother.
So we can see that the role of women and men are totally difference from the past. Both of them also have the responsibility to take care children but not only women. Also, men no longer are the bread-winner of a family. Women also can have her career.
When I was young, I want to become an office lady in my future. It is because I can always sit in the office and enjoy the air conditional. However, I think this concept can be applied in some people working at home. Nowadays, many people especially woman take their job back to home. Therefore, they can work at home and also can pay more attention to their children. It seems technology bring convenience to people, women can take care both children and work. In your presentation, you mention that technology make women more self-determination. It is not all true because I think women nowadays is already strong. In past, women are expected stay at home and looking after children. However, women are more self-determination. They have a high position in work. So, if we say technology make woman be more self-determination. I can say, technology is the other hand help women to take care their responsibility.
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ReplyDeleteWorking mom is no longer an odd phenomenon in recent years as advanced technology enhances women to access internet freely just as if they can afford some electrical devices like PCs or iPhones. And they can be more self - determinate as they can access most up-to-date information and be linked with the outside world. Learning knowledge is no longer only fixed with academics thick books and papers but online materials to upgrade themselves. They could buy things online conveniently without leaving their house. However, what if working mom has to work at home? Yes, they bring their work back home or even set her office at home to settle down daily affairs for customers or save much time and money for not travelling day by day to a far working place but this act seriously blurs the boundaries of home and office and may eventually worsen the relationship between mom and kids. There is no difference whether you are working in office, at home or in a cafe if you don't have time to stay and play with kids. Therefore family planning for couples is very important in this case not only sharing responsibility of doing housework but also looking after their beloved kids.
ReplyDeleteRoles of women are obviously changing nowadays with the rise and common use of advanced technology. Disproportional of ratio of two genders may be one of the factors of increase in working female but advanced technology mainly gives ways and supports to females as a media to explore more rather than doing the only thing at home after marriage. Also the society is changing with more varieties of jobs, like freelance translator or website designers, that people are not necessarily staying at office for particular hours to finish their work. So, there are so many choices for women to choose in which traditional housewife is no longer the only one occupation now.
In the old days, men always work outside and women should stay at home taking care of their children. “Work”, this word always meant outside and public areas before. But nowadays people can check their emails; conduct daily activities online such as shop, communicate, bank, study and work. People even can apply for jobs online and work at home through the Internet. Technology blurs the boundary between public and private. In fact, advanced technology changes the mindset of “work”. It let us works everywhere in every single minutes. It helps women to be more self-determinated indeed since they can reach more information. As people who know the information more will be more powerful. Yes, technology can enhance the status of the women nowadays. However, it may have a chance to make it worst. As the conventional mind of women is taking care of children at home, the job of taking care of children is always belonging to women. Advanced technology may be seen as an extra thing for women, as people may think the responsibilities of women should be taking care of their children and organizing her family properly. If she can work at home but doesn’t take good care of her children, people will still blame on her and will not appreciate her.
ReplyDeleteI think that the definition of "work" is changing, as technology become prosperous, we can not work or live without computer, and nowadays, the women are able to work and even become the high positions of work, like manager or boss, also now is different from a tranditional society which believe that "ignorance is a woman's virtue " in China.
ReplyDeleteAbout the differences between mon and dad, i think those must have different itself charaters, for me, my mom like a coordinator and dad usually more impulsive or say less words. Besides, most of woman also would like to work in Hongkong, however, my aunt who live in China, she dont need to work. It not just reflects that because of the income of economy in the household, but also shows the value of work, are different between mainland and HK too.
In large extent, the technology can help the women to be more self-determination, as through the technonlgy, we can recognize this world plenty,in other words, to receive and know more imformaitons which means "power". I think that its able to reconstruct the gender idenity, maybe as a new generation of women can learn or even they are smart than the man, and have enough knowleges that chase what they want, specially “fair”, as no doubt that can change the divergence of gender.
Moreover, to take care the child is a responsibility for parents, if the couples, not only the women, who would like to work but have no time to take care the baby, they should hire the nanny. Also, as michael said, family planning is very important, it's better that not to have kids if the couples have no time for their child.
In my mind, “work” means to work in office or places which outside home. However, as the technology has improved, the meaning of the word “work” becomes more blur. People can transfer files and documents to technical devices and work everywhere, which means “work” is no longer restricted by time and places. On the contrary, the actual working time will become longer, since people have no excuses to leave their works in office only. They even need to deal with their works after back home.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like more women will be more flexible to arrange their time in working and for family. In my opinion, this cannot reconstruct the identity of women and the situation even gets worse. As I remembered that in the presentation, there was a video showing about “working at home” mum. In the video, the “working at home” mum suggested to hang out a plate outside the door during the working time. However, why is a must for women to be the one to take care the whole family? Although in these days, more women go to work; family matters, like housework are still deservedly treated as women’s responsibility. The advance in technology seems to become a barrier for women to have self-determination in choosing their position in “working mom” and “full-time mom”.
I think that working at home is very common nowadays.So many women stay home and work also.
ReplyDeleteThere is a question that is that good for the people to bring their job back to home.Before,when we are talking about work,that is 9am-5pm at the office. Nowadays,there is no working hours anymore.We need to work in every second. Also, home become office and office become home.I think it is not a good thing for us. It is because our personal space will be affected.