Negotiating futures: young women's stories of the space and place of work and family

Mainstream debates of career and family are locked within the dichotomous choice of \u27to have\u27 or \u27not to have\u27. Drawing on a recent series of in-depth interviews with young women (Year 12) who plan on having both a professional career and a family, Angela Barns explores young women\u27s views on: relationships; meanings of \u27career\u27; family formation and family responsibilities; and the balance between work and family life. The findings suggest that, integral to the young women\u27s future aspirations is a commitment to the idea of multiple selves, multiple realities and the negotiation of possibilities. This paper was presented at the Eighth Australian Institute of Family Studies Conference