article

Women and the division of labor: a Jamaican example

American anthropologist74 (3) • Published In 1972 • Pages: 689-692

By: Pollock, Nancy J..

Abstract
Based on data gathered in two rural western Jamaican communities, this brief source is concerned with changes in women's status and economic activities in relation to changes in household structure over time. The author argues that the matri-centered family is attributable to economic constraints and labor migration, with few males available to serve as heads of households. Women begin bearing children in free unions and become the principal provider for their families, largely through cultivating crops. However, matri-centered families are a temporary construct; males return to the community, marry, and become heads of households, and women become less active in the economic sphere.
Subjects
Division of labor by gender
Gender status
Household
Child care
culture
Jamaicans
Region
Middle America and the Caribbean
Sub Region
Caribbean
Document Type
article
Evaluation
Creator Type
Ethnologist
Document Rating
5: Excellent Primary Data
Analyst
Eleanor Swanson ; John Beierle ; 1976
Field Date
1964 (3 months)
Coverage Date
1964
Coverage Place
western Jamaica
Notes
Nancy J. Pollock
Includes bibliographical references
LCCN
17015424
LCSH
Jamaica--Social life and customs