DIVISION-OF-LABOR ON FAMILY FARMS - A LIFE-COURSE ANALYSIS

Research has not adequately explored the organizational structure of l abor on family farms. Although it has been suggested that the structur e of the division of labor on family farms is influenced by the family life cycle, consistent results have not been reported. In this articl e, we integrate the commodity systems approach and the developmental p erspective to examine the influence of the family life cycle on women' s involvement in farm labor. Consistent with the hypotheses, the resul ts indicate that life course stages influence women's involvement in f arm labor, and this effect is especially significant for labor-intensi ve tasks such as tobacco production. The results also indicate that an understanding of the division of farm labor must take into acount men 's and women's off-farm labor and other factors that relate the farm e nterprise to the larger economy.