Mums see part-time work, outside home, as ideal situation

Mothers with at least one child at home consider a part-time job, outside the home, an ideal situation, a survey released Monday indicates. Asking the question, "What would be the ideal situation for you: working full-time, working part-time or not working at all outside the home?" the Pew Research Center found 47 percent of respondents said working part-time would be the preferred situation, with 32 percent answering full-time and 20 percent saying no work outside the home at all. The question has been asked since 1997, with little variation in the answers. In 2007, 50 percent said part-time work would be their ideal, up from 44 percent in 1997. The survey also noted 40 percent of mothers with annual family incomes of less than $25,000 preferred full-time work, compared to only 25 percent of those with incomes of more than $50,000. The most recent survey, taken in 2012, also found single mothers were much more likely than married mothers to say their ideal situation involved full-time work. Pew Research Center did not explain the methodology for the 2012 survey.