Biological Clock: Reconciling Careers and Motherhood in the 1980's

With psychologist Wiliam Gerin of Barnard College, McKaughan devised a questionnaire that was printed in Working Woman in 1985. The responses formed the basis for an article by the author in the magazine and this book: an impressive study of motherhood today. Approximately 100 women interviewed here illustrate the problem of reconciling careers and motherhood, as women in their 30s feel their reproductive years passing. The book presents data on older, first-time mothers; single women with children; and finally, the results of the decisions by so-called ""clock-watchers.'' It is engrossing to read about how mothers feel about their children, how they oversee their care as well as the demands of a job and other aspects of domestic and social life. McKaughan concludes with her personal story as a wife and the family's main breadwinner who risked her position to bear a child (a son) when she was 34 and another one at age 41 (a daughter), creating what she considers a happy family and, for her, a more rewarding professional and home life. (November 6)