Polkowska, Dominika2013-03-132013-03-132007Ruch Prawniczy, Ekonomiczny i Socjologiczny 69, 2007, z. 1, s. 231-243.0035-9629http://hdl.handle.net/10593/5191For many centuries the public and private sphere have functioned separately from each other. Women were looking after the children and engaged in housework, while men worked to provide their families with money to survive. However, as social consciousness grew, women were gradually leaving the private sphere to engage more in public activities, and take up employment. This met with a strong opposition among men who feard that they might lose their position in a family. On the other hand, women were not prepared to compete with men, and they also encountered various obstacles created for them on their professional development path, especially in such areas like politics, business, education or health service. There are many reasons for the under-representation of women in public life. The main one is related to the stereotypes of the social roles attributed to men and women, subsequently passed over to children in the process of their upbringing, and a relatively low self-esteem still prevailing among many women.plArtykuł