Study Shows Female Breadwinners Feel Guilt

Ambition, pressure, worry and guilt.

According to a new study, women who bring home the bacon feel a complicated mix of emotions, the result of being independent and carreer-oriented while also feeling guilty about not being at home and raising the family.

In the study, conducted by Rebecca Meisenbach from the University of Missouri, 15 women between the ages of 23 and 60 were chosen for lengthy interviews because they were "highly ambitious, career driven, and they feel more pressure to perform well at work than when they were single and they weren't the breadwinner."

The interviews showed that most successful working women, with men at home taking care of the family, enjoyed the sense of independence and control they have over their own lives, but they often found themselves up against cultural expectations that they should be at home with the kids.

According to Meisenbach, many of the women she talked to felt they were alone in their experiences and feelings. She hopes this study will show other women the common obstacles they face in developing their own identities.

"The female breadwinner is an increasingly important and common role in contemporary society, one that impacts family relationships, individual identities, and organizational policies," she said.