Nickie Charles discusses theoretical developments in the sociological study of gender, providing an overview of how conceptual shifts have affected not only what is studied, which is itself changing, but also how it is studied and the questions that are asked. The empirical areas that provide the focus of the book are paid employment, domestic labour, parenting, education, the 'crisis' of masculinity, sexuality, and politics. Although the book is centrally concerned with gender, attention is paid to other bases of inequality and social identities such as class, ethnicity, and sexuality. Throughout, the author engages with contemporary debates about the significance of changes in gender relations, showing that while there has been very real change in some areas of social life, in others there has been remarkable continuity. Finally, gender relations in Britain are situated in international context and linked to global social and economic processes and divisions of labour.

This important new study of gender in modern Britain provides a succinct and clearly written textbook for students on gender studies, women's studies, and sociology of gender courses.