Decapitating the U.S. Census Bureau's "Head of Household": Feminist Mobilization in the 1970s

Harriet Presser

Feminist Economics, 1998, vol. 4, issue 3, 145-158

Abstract: In 1970, as in previous decades, the U.S. Bureau of the Census's household enumeration began with a lead question as to who was the 'head of household'. With the resurgence of feminism, this concept was challenged as an ambiguous concept which implied an authority structure imputed by the Bureau not measured, and offensive to many people. This paper tells the story of successful feminist mobilization in the 1970s that led to the removal of this concept from the U.S. decennial censuses beginning with 1980.

Keywords: Head Of Household; Censuses; Feminist Mobilization (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 1998
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DOI: 10.1080/135457098338356

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