Kristina A. Bourne’s research while affiliated with University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire and other places

This ethnographic study of women business owners questions whether the flexibility their occupation affords is truly an advantage to balancing work and other aspects of life. Drawing on Weber's ideal types of social action, our analysis suggests that flexibility favors work. Instrumental rationality is evidenced when the participants position their work patterns as a good use of time. We introduce the concept working lightly to show how they use affective and value rationalities as justifications for working during nonwork times (e.g., it's a way to feel good in the long run). We also develop the concept of working lite, which is when they invoke traditional rationality by melding habits associated with relaxation and work tasks (e.g., working while watching television). Finally, we show how our findings extend the critique of flexibility in the work-life literature.

This article focuses on the way in which women entrepreneurs legitimate their place in a gendered economy by reifying a divide between ‘real work’ and ‘not-real work’. Using ethnographic approaches to follow the everyday lives of several women who own and operate small businesses in the USA, our article documents three gendering practices the women use for ‘becoming real workers:’ embodied, spatial and temporal. The study shows that women entrepreneurs become ‘productive workers’ by recasting reproductive work as non-productive or not-real work. At the end, we explore two possible alternative conceptualizations of ‘work’ that could contribute to dissolving this gendered divide.

Drawing on social exchange theory, we explore the reciprocal relationship between the perception of being offered family-oriented benefits (childcare information services and childcare vouchers) and parent-employees' engagement in organizational citizenship behaviors (OCB). We examine the moderating role of both general and family-oriented social support from coworkers, an often cited, but less frequently studied aspect of parent-employees' work experiences. Based on survey data from parent-employees and their supervisors in the United States, we find that the strength of the relationship between the benefits and OCBs varies when coworker support is high versus low and that the direction of the relationship varies according to the type of coworker support. Specifically, when childcare vouchers are offered, OCBs are related to general support, whereas when childcare information is offered, OCBs are related to family-oriented support

Drawing on social exchange theory, we explore the reciprocal relationship between the perception of being offered family-oriented benefits (childcare information services and childcare vouchers) and parent–employees' engagement in organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs). We examine the moderating role of both general and family-oriented social support from coworkers, an often cited, but less frequently studied aspect of parent–employees' work experiences. Based on survey data from parent–employees and their supervisors in the United States, we find that the strength of the relationship between the benefits and OCBs varies when coworker support is high versus low and that the direction of the relationship varies according to the type of coworker support. Specifically, when childcare vouchers are offered, OCBs are related to general support, whereas when childcare information is offered, OCBs are related to family-oriented support.

This study investigates the impact of passing the Professional in Human Resources (PHR) certification exam on the early career success of recent college graduates. Data were gathered from alumni of three Midwestern universities who earned an undergraduate degree in business administration (i.e., BBA) with a major in human resources. The survey was designed to measure early career success indicators including finding a job in the HR field, starting salary, and number of promotions. Results reveal that the probability of one’s first job after graduation being in human resources was significantly greater for those who had passed the PHR exam compared with those who did not pass or did not take the exam. Passing the PHR exam was not associated with significant differences in starting salary or early career promotions. Implications, study strengths and limitations, and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Purpose Informed by socialist feminist theory, the purpose of this paper is to understand the impact of societal factors such as governmental policies, labor market structure, social norms, and gender ideology on the experiences and practices of women small business owners in Sweden. Design/methodology/approach Using qualitative data gathered during four months of fieldwork in Sweden, the analysis focuses on the case of Malin Andersson, the founder of a domestic services company, to show how individual situations are intimately connected to the larger social, political, and economic environments. Findings The analysis demonstrates how the complexities of gender and class dynamics interact with business endeavors in a capitalist society with a strong social democratic political system. In particular, the paper shows how Malin Andersson's experience of entrepreneurship is at the nexus of many social forces, creating many contradictions and paradoxes to understanding her experience. Originality/value The theoretical framework and empirical evidence suggest that paying attention to the socio‐economic‐political context is vital to illuminate the contradictions inherent, but often overlooked, in women's experience of entrepreneurship in different situations.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the rhetorical strategies women use as they debate the efficacy of maternity leave policies in the USA and how these strategies reify the public/private divide. Design/methodology/approach – Using rhetorical analysis, the characteristics of women's discussion are examined in an online forum. Findings – Participants rely on two primary strategies: “public” strategies (e.g. employing facts, logic, statistics) for most of their discussion; and “private” strategies (e.g. relating personal experiences) as a strategy of last resort when the public strategies fail. Further, their personal recountings lack detail and ultimately limit the ability to strengthen the posters' arguments. Research limitations/implications – While this paper focuses on a US context, the approach lends itself well to examining the cultural assumptions underpinning specific policies and extending the study of the complexities of the assumed public/private divide in additional settings. Practical implications – The paper suggests that in order to advance arguments for or against change in a cultural climate that so clearly divides the public and the private, women will need to invest more of their personal experiences to argue more effectively the impact of a social policy on their lives. Originality/value – This study uses online texts as the focus of analysis and in doing so examines the rich, authentic interaction of women from a variety of organizational backgrounds.

In today's often complicated and fast-paced world, individuals are pulled in many different directions. Balancing work and personal roles--including those of parent, spouse, caregiver, volunteer, and so forth--can be a daunting task. In the literature, identity theory speaks to the multi-faceted existence employees face, beyond that of just "worker." The differing roles individuals occupy have traditionally been viewed as competing, implicitly suggesting that attention to one area of a person's life necessarily detracts from the others, and that juggling and managing multiple roles causes stress and emotional strain. To explore the verity of this notion we conducted a study, which is described herein. Of significance, 55% of our sample indicated that they were dual-centric; that is, individuals who value both their work and non-work roles equally. In this article, we build on extant research and find support for the belief that dual-centrics experience more overall satisfaction, greater work-life balance, and less emotional exhaustion. Given the seeming increase in employees' dual-centric focus, it is rational to suggest that one way in which organizations can improve and enhance employee well-being is by embracing them as whole individuals. This article explores that notion, and provides innovative examples from Fortune magazine's "100 Best Companies to Work For" list regarding how this objective can be accomplished.

We engage in a critical theoretical exercise to extend the boundaries of entrepreneur-ship theory and research by reframing "entrepreneurship as positive economic activity" to "entrepreneurship as social change." Reframing entrepreneurship through feminist analytical lenses, we argue that more theoretical frameworks are needed for exploring the varieties of social change that entrepreneurship may bring about. We also discuss what difference this would make in extant entrepreneurship perspectives. Theoretically, methodologically, and analytically, such reframing is the main contribution of this paper.

As a graduate student attempting to integrate feminist principles into my academic endeavors, I eagerly entered the research field to examine how women business owners who feel a conflict between feminism and capitalism enact their everyday lives. I chose participant observation, a common methodology in feminist research, with the aim of getting “inside” these women's lives to better understand their experiences. However, as the fieldwork proceeded, my focus shifted to examining the space in which the realities of the feminist organizational researcher and of the feminist business owner encounter one another. This paper reflects upon how we made sense of our practices through complex interactions that blurred the binary between subject/object and researcher/researched. By acknowledging the co-constitution of the research process, scholars of organizational studies can begin to rethink the relationship between the ‘researcher’ and the ‘researched’ and ask questions about the power dynamics inherent to fieldwork.