Gaining Self-Sufficiency

Moving from alimony dependence to work

Women, Men and the New Economics of Marriage

by Richard Fry and D'Vera Cohn, Pew Research Center

January 19, 2010

"The institution of marriage has undergone significant changes in recent decades as women have outpaced men in education and earnings growth. These unequal gains have been accompanied by gender role reversals in both the spousal characteristics and the economic benefits of marriage."

"A larger share of men in 2007, compared with their 1970 counterparts, are married to women whose education and income exceeded their own, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of demographic and economic trend data. A larger share of women are married to men with less education and income"

"In 1970, 28% of wives in this age range had husbands who were better educated than they were, outnumbering the 20% whose husbands had less education. By 2007, these patterns had reversed: 19% of wives had husbands with more education, versus 28% whose husbands had less education. In the remaining couples – about half in 1970 and 2007 – spouses have similar education levels."

"Along the same lines, only 4% of husbands had wives who brought home more income than they did in 1970, a share that rose to 22% in 2007." Click Here to Read More:

Higher Self-Esteem and Lower Distress For Divorced Women Who Work

Gina Michele Bisagni and John Eckenrode of Cornell University, Human Development and Family Studies, co-authored a research study, The Role of Work Identity in Women's Adjustment to Divorce.

Based on data from 40 semi-structured interviews, this inquiry explored the role of employment as a focus of identity in women's divorce adjustment. Four salient aspects of the worker role were measured: meaningfulness, social interaction/support, productivity, and positive distraction. The work indentity was associated with higher levels of self-esteem and lower levels of distress…

Benefits and Opportunities for Divorced Women Who Work:

Recession Drives Women Back to the Work Force, New York Times, September 18, 2009



Get to Work: A Manifesto for Women of the World, by Linda R. Hirshman

If I Don't Do it Now: Career Makeovers for the Working Woman, By Pamela Robinson

Job Sites for Women and Men

Indeed.com – Scans all new job openings and emails each day a list of jobs that match search criteria

Idealist.org – Job website for non-profit positions

Job-Applications.com – Find hundreds of online applications and printable job forms

Federal Government Jobs (https://www.usajobs.gov) - Civil Service, Post Office and other federal jobs