The promise of equal opportunity in the United States implies access to education. Underlying this promise is the belief that educational achievement can be translated into occupational success. Belief in this ideal of equal opportunity and the value of education,coupled with a changing sociopolitical climate, prompted the challenges made to the educational status quo in the 1960s and 1970s. During those turbulent years women activists once again found their political voice to lobby for educational and occupational reforms.
The potential usefulness of research on women's issues to the policymaking process is discussed in the context of the arguments both for and against trying to increase the policy utility of social science research in general. J. Weiss's concepts of "intrinsic," "intellectual," and "political usefulness" are presented and applied to specific policy issues of importance to women. The paper examines ways in which researchers could enhance the policy relevance of their research and ways in which the psychology establishment could encourage the development of policy-relevant research. The middle section of the paper describes the large array of roles and settings for social scientists in the federal policy structure, treating the executive, legislative, and judicial branches in turn. The history of and dilemmas created by the "Brandeis brief" are presented. The last section of the paper presents some important policy issues affecting women in the next five years and illustrates how one particular area of research could be made more useful.Many of us are interested in making social policy more responsive to equity concerns, particularly those of women and minorities.Social policy at its best is the informed choice of alternatives, based o n comparisons in terms of costs and benefits, and effect on incen-~~
Institutional changes are described which would facilitate the expansion of women's occupational lives. Part I reviews educational trends in schools, focusing on legislation and other activities to eliminate sex discrimination in federally supported educational institutions. Part I1 discusses current trends to interface education and work, and proposes a transitional work group model which incorporates feminist values and legitimizes the work place as a place for learning. Part 111 discusses trends towards participatory democracy and asserts that the training of women to use new technologies in communications and computers will increase their power to shape public policy. The conclusion points to the necessity for compensatory and anticipatory measures to ensure the representation of all groups of women in decision-making environments.The purpose of this article is to generate an awareness and a sense of urgency about recent developments that can be used to promote the participation of women in shaping future public policy in general, and in implementing existing policies that could enhance their occupational lives.
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