ABSTRACT
Since the end of World War II, the percentage of women in the work force has increased dramatically in all Western nations. Although such increases are manifested in all age groups, they are most pronounced among women with children under 5 years of age (Hofferth & Phillips, in press; Kamerman, 1983). In the United States, the percentage of working mothers of infants and preschoolers has increased from 32% in 1970 to more than 50% in 1985 and is expected to approach 60% by 1990 (Hoffman, 1984). The most dramatic increases in maternal employment have occurred for married women with infants under 12 months; their rate of employment has increased more than 10% from 1975 to 1985 and now exceeds 50% (Kamerman, this volume).
