Year: 2009
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: While there have been dramatic increases in the labor force participation among women with minor children, our understanding about their psychological consequences is limited. Using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979, this study addresses a question of how employment and motherhood are associated with women’s psychological well-being. It also assesses variations in the associations by occupational characteristics and age of children. Results show that the positive effects of employment on women’s psychological well-being are contingent upon family status by providing partial support for the work and family conflict perspective. While the overall association between motherhood and psychological well-being is neither exacerbated nor ameliorated by employment, unemployed women who either never married or childless married women report lower levels of psychological well-being. Variations in the relationship between employment and motherhood associated with psychological wellbeing by age of children and work characteristics are also found.
Author: Hyeyoung Woo
Institution: Wichita State University
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W1844627193