After her children go away to college, Mary continues to care for her frail parents, but she also starts learning computer programming (which has historically been a male-dominated position) in order to get a part-time job.
Based on the information provided within the question it can be said that the scenario is illustrating the androgyny shift. In the context of psychology this describes the change that occurs in mid-life, where both men and women retain their gender but begin to inherit traits and qualities associated with the opposite sex.
