What Women Want: Evidence from British Social Attitudes, Edition 2

What Women Want argues that sociology and social policy in Britain have failed to recognize how women's orientation to paid work and a career remains different from men's. Most women now have paid jobs, but the happiest are those working only part time, with plenty of time to enjoy motherhood and being a homemaker. A revised sexual division of labor has emerged; and the author argues that denial of this in Britain may be contributing to the breakdown of family life.

A working male partner is a major factor in making women happy. The least content are single mothers dependent on state welfare who know that the state expects them to repay its support by becoming full-time workers when their children reach a certain age. Many single mothers may be victims of policies prioritizing work for women. Single motherhood has grown alongside male male breadwinners. This is a new edition of a book previously distributed only in the United Kingdom.