"And When You Go Home...You're Empty": Emotional Labor and Student Affairs Mothers

• In Event: Ethical Considerations in Higher Education

Abstract

This study examines emotional labor in the student affairs profession. Drawing on a narrative study of 21 mothers working full-time in student affairs at a single institution, participant experiences depict a population caught between two entrenched gendered norms: student affairs as a numerically woman-dominated, caring profession demanding their constant presence, emotional attention, and dedication to students and their work alongside norms of a constantly present and available mother who ought to be home with her children. The gendered nature of their labor at the office and at home caused our participants to feel inadequate and guilty about their perceived failures in both arenas. This study’s findings demonstrate implications for the ways in which gender norms harm student affairs professionals.

Author

• Saralyn McKinnon-Crowley, Georgia Institute of Technology