Running at Double Pace: Women in Dual-Profession Marriages

Although the problems facing dual-profession couples are almost universally acknowledged, studies on dual-profession couples have only recently emerged from those on dual-worker or dual-career families. To explore the perceptions that women in dual-profession marriages have of their roles, conflicts, and coping strategies, focus group interviews and case studies of nine women in dual-profession marriages were content analyzed. The findings indicated that for these professional women the identity of professional was very important to their self-esteem. Most had entered their profession by chance, and only two identified a future professional dream. Although the women expressed a need for recognition and praise for their achievement, few had had professional mentors or felt they received sufficient praise or recognition from their husbands or colleagues. The order of saliency for their three major roles was mother, wife, and professional; unstated role expectations by others defined their boundaries of behavior, restricted their opportunities for career advancement, and often caused them guilt and resentment. Conflicts related to the dual-profession marriages were evident in attempts to balance career and achievement needs, equity and responsibility, money, and time and stress. Their most commonly employed coping strategies were accommodation/sacrifice, avoidance/withdrawal, hiring help, planning/scheduling, and role redefinition. (Six recommendations for future research on dual-profession marriages conclude the paper.) (MCF)