ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book explains the time-use data to undertake a broad-ranging and detailed analysis of the time effects of having children. One of the most perplexing contemporary challenges for young women is whether to become a mother, when to become a mother, and how to manage being a mother to children once born. Gender roles are much more similar, in that women have entered the work force in huge numbers, and male and female contributions to domestic labour, though not equal, have become more so. The lack of social recognition of the time demands of parenthood may mean that prospective mothers themselves are unaware of how large they will. One reason the time impact of children upon their parents has not been widely researched is that it is viewed from so many different perspectives that it is difficult to define the issue.
