Suzanne M. Bianchi (April 15, 1952,

Fort Dodge, Iowa Fort Dodge is a city in, and the county seat of, Webster County, Iowa, United States, along the Des Moines River. The population was 24,871 in the 2020 census, a decrease from 25,136 in 2000. Fort Dodge is a major commercial center for North Ce ...

– November 4, 2013,

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

) was an American sociologist. She was known for her work studying the evolving American family and gender roles.

Personal life

Suzanne M. Bianchi was born in

to Rita and Pesho Bianchi. Her mother was a housewife and her father was a meat packing plant employee. Bianchi was the oldest of six children. She and her husband, Mark Browning, had three children.

Education and career

After graduating valedictorian from her high school, Bianchi was the first in her family to go to college and earned her B.A. in

Sociology Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of Empirical ...

from

Creighton University Creighton University is a private Jesuit research university in Omaha, Nebraska. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1878, the university is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. In 2015 the university enrolled 8,393 graduate and undergra ...

, her M.A. from

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin founded the school in 1842. The main campu ...

, and her Ph.D. from the

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

. Bianchi began her career as a demographer for the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, where she remained until 1994, rising to an assistant division chief position. In 1994, she joined the faculty at the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...

, where she eventually chaired the university's sociology department and became the founding director of the Maryland Population Research Center. In 2000, she served as president of the

Population Association of America The Population Association of America (PAA) is a non-profit scientific professional association dedicated to the study of issues related to population and demography. The PAA was established by Henry Pratt Fairchild and Frederick Osborn, with fun ...

. In 2009, Bianchi moved to

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

, where she was the first Dorothy L. Meier Chair in Social Equities. Among her main fields of study she focused on working mothers, researching and analyzing changes in American family life during the last decades.

Death

In July 2013, Bianchi was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. She died on November 4, 2013.

Major contributions

Bianchi made many major contributions with her use of "time diaries." Her work encouraged the creation and use of the

American Time Use Survey The American Time Use Survey (ATUS), sponsored by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and conducted by the United States Census Bureau (USCB), is a time-use survey which provides measures of the amounts of time people spend on various activities, ...

(ATUS) as well other international time use surveys. Bianchi's academic work explored the shrinking gender gap and how women's careers affected households. Most of her studies focused on how parents, especially mothers, balance the demands of work and family. She researched women's employment, how husbands and wives divide housework and time with children, and how women take care of their children and parents. Bianchi notably reported in her 2000 presidential address to the

that 1990's working mothers spend similar amounts of time with their children as their 1960's stay-at-home counterparts, disproving the concept that maternal employment harms children. She was also the co-author of seven books. One of her co-authors, Judith Selzer, said of her, "She always identified puzzles in the social world and tried to solve them by rigorous empirical studies." The book "Continuity and change in the American Family", co-written with Lynne Casper, was award-winning, as well as her book "Changing Rhythms of American Family Life" with Melissa Milkie and John P. Robinson.

References

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bianchi, Suzanne 1952 births 2013 deaths People from Fort Dodge, Iowa Creighton University alumni University of Notre Dame alumni University of Michigan alumni American sociologists American women sociologists Family sociologists American demographers United States Census Bureau people University of Maryland, College Park faculty University of California, Los Angeles faculty Deaths from pancreatic cancer in California