The good-provider role: Its rise and fall

The general structure of the "traditional" American family, in which the husband-father is the provider and the wife-mother the housewife, began to take shape early in the 19th century. This structure lasted from the 1830s to 1980, when the US Census no longer automatically denominated the male as head of the household. As "providing" became increasingly mediated by cash derived from participation in the labor force or from commercial enterprises, the powers and prerogatives of the provider role augmented, and those of the housewife declined. Gender identity became associated with work site as well as with work. In the 20th century, more and more married women entered the labor force and assumed a share of the provider role. At the present time a process that R. Smith calls "the subtle revolution" is realigning family roles. Social-psychological obstacles related to gender identity have to be overcome before a new social-psychological structure can be achieved. (37 ref)