SOCI 2655W - Final

Reproductive Labor

The hands-on work that maintains care in the household. Nakano Glenn explains how the sexual division of reproductive labor reinforces gender hierarchy by associating this work solely with women.

Global Care Chains

A pattern, explained by Zimmerman, Lit, and Bose, where women migrate from their own countries, leaving their families behind, to perform care work for more privileged women in wealthier nations. It’s a global network of paid and unpaid caregiving labor.

Dirty Work

Defined by Clare Stacey as physically and emotionally demanding, stigmatized, and undervalued tasks, such as hygiene care and emotional support. Despite societal undervaluing, workers often find dignity in this essential labor.

International Division of Reproductive Labor

As discussed by Fiona Williams, this concept combines racialized domestic labor (Nakano Glenn) and gendered global labor flows (Saskia Sassen), describing how women from poorer countries do domestic work in wealthier countries.

Care Deficit

According to Zimmerman, Lit, and Bose, this occurs when needed care—paid or unpaid—cannot be provided due to events like childbirth or illness. It reflects systemic social changes and can impact entire groups.

Intersectionality

A framework by Kimberlé Crenshaw and Patricia Hill Collins that examines how overlapping social identities (race, gender, class, etc.) produce compounded experiences of power and inequality.

Commodification of Care

As explained by Zimmerman, Lit, and Bose, care tasks once done informally are turned into specialized jobs and occupations. This shift extends into the middle class, making care work resemble a commercial product.

Ableism

According to Mauldin and Brown, ableism is discrimination against disabled people, rooted in societal values that prioritize able-bodied norms and exclude those who deviate from those ideals.

Secondary Dependence

Nakano Glenn’s concept describing how unpaid caregivers rely on a third party (e.g., a breadwinner or the state) for support. This highlights the economic vulnerability of those who provide unpaid care.