Research released recently is a bit baffling. Apparently after generations of fighting to throw off the shackles of domestic servitude in order to be taken seriously in the workplace, and treated as the equal of men, women are desperate to get back to the kitchen, and leave the proper job of earning money to the men.

The bizarre finding came out in a study of the results of the annual British Social Attitudes survey, which revealed a sea change in attitudes in the last ten years.

The number of mothers with children under four who thought that family life would suffer if women worked full-time has been falling for years, from 43% in 1990 to 21% in 1998. However, at that point everything started to change, By 2002 it was rising again, and by 2006 it was at 37%.

A similar bounce was seen in the number of people who agree most women want a home and children. By 2002 it had fallen to 15%, but in 2006 it had risen to 32%

And even more oddly, another jump came when women were asked whether they should have a different role to men. By 2002 only 2% of women held this view, But by 2006 it had risen again to 17%.

The authors of the report said: "Women with young children are going back to the very traditional division of labour in which they want the husband as the breadwinner. 'Having tried full-time working themselves they have found the home much more interesting and want to be enabled to have that - especially if the only job they have access to is a dull job."

So it's official. Women are through with having careers, and want babies and Agas.

Or is there something else going on?

All is not what it seems. For a start, the study was carried out for the Centre for Policy Studies in association with the Hera Trust, and when was the last time you expected a right-leaning think tank to come out with the view that women want to work?

So what could possibly lie behind these figures? Could it be harsh reality?

What do you think will happen if you ask a woman chained to the kitchen sink if the world is going to end if she takes a job and regains some financial freedom, intellectual stimulation, and control over her life? They are, of course, going to conclude that family life won't be destroyed.

Now ask a woman who is working all hours to make ends meet. Many women are going into work in any way that fits around their husband's usually higher-paying job. They are taking dull jobs because they are the ones with flexibility. They are working evenings, weekends and night shifts because they can't afford childcare. And they are juggling full time caring work with full time employment. Why wouldn't they think that family life is suffering? Why wouldn't they think women should have a different role to men?

This study may be hailed by some as a sign women can't have it all, that they should get back in the home where they belong. It may be seen as a betrayal of those generations who fought so hard for their freedom, or as capitulation by the weaker sex coming to terms with the fact they can't cut it in the workplace.

It is in fact none of those things.

It's a sign of the fact that being a mum with young kids is a tricky job. Whatever you do, you will work harder than you ever did, for less money, and have to meet higher costs. You will struggle through four or five years trying to do the best for everyone and wishing someone somewhere would wave a magic wand and give you an extra 10 hours in a day.

The solution isn't to banish women back to the house with a rap over the knuckles, the key is to offer support to people who are doing their best, for childcare to cost less, for workplaces to be more flexible, and for men to take up some of the slack at home so everyone is doing one and a half jobs, rather than women holding down two on their own.

Of course, as a working mum I have to admit to bias. So what do you think? Is this a sign women need more support, or should this be an end to working mums? Let us know in the comments.