Flexible working, work–family conflict, and maternal gatekeeping: The daily experiences of dual‐earner couples

Abstract

This study explores the impact of flexible working on the daily experiences of work–family conflict for dual‐earner couples with child dependants. In exploring these daily experiences, the occurrence of maternal gatekeeping behaviours, and the relationship between flexible working and such behaviours is investigated. We draw on episodic and longitudinal data from qualitative diaries kept for a 1‐month period by both members of 24 couples (48 participants) as well as from introductory and subsequent in‐depth qualitative interviews with the couples, both together and apart. We report an evidence suggesting that work–family conflicts are experienced and resolved differently, depending on whether it is the male or the female who works flexibly within dual‐earner couples. This link between flexible working and gender is demonstrated to have an important impact on maternal gatekeeping behaviours, which are highlighted as playing a crucial role in such daily experiences and how they are resolved. Practitioner points Traditional gender norms still play a role in parents' decisions to work flexibly and workers who opt for non‐traditional routes may feel stigmatized. HR departments and employers need to promote the legitimacy of male access to flexible working and work–life balance policies, so these are not perceived as opportunities for mothers alone. Greater father take‐up of work–life balance initiatives that offer more opportunities for involvement in childcare should be encouraged. Employers should offer a variety of flexible working arrangements to provide employees with desirable and healthy resolution options when faced with incidents of work–family conflict.

Unpredictable working time, well-being and health in the police service

“…There are several possible explanations. As men take on multiple roles outside employment, work-life conflict increases, which in turn increases the complexity of scheduling, especially if part of a dual income household (Radcliffe and Cassell, 2014). Flexible working may encourage more, rather than merely varied, hours at work, especially in this sample of full-time police officers.…”

Fathering and Flexible Working Arrangements: A Systematic Interdisciplinary Review

“…Such research has described the similarities and differences in flexible working arrangements across countries, including a focus on Nordic policies and practices as the gold standard for egalitarianism in balancing work and family (Narvi, 2012;Naz, 2010;Tervola, Duvander, & Mussino, 2017). Like sociology and cultural and gender studies, research from the discipline of business and management research has predominantly focused on the role of workplace culture and norms (Sanders et al, 2015), paternal identity (Humberd, Ladge, & Harrington, 2014;Ladge, Humberd, Watkins & Harrington, 2015), and gendered expectations (Atkinson & Hall, 2009;Berdahl & Moon, 2013;Burnett et al, 2013;Gatrell & Cooper, 2008;Radcliffe & Cassell, 2015), assessing how workplace organizational culture interacts with gendered expectations of men (and women) to positively or negatively affect organizational and social support for flexible working for men (Burnett, Gatrell, Cooper, & Sparrow, 2010;Gatrell, Burnett, Cooper, & Sparrow, 2014;Sanders et al, 2015). Although there is little doubt that discipline specific research has yielded important insights into fathers' access to and experiences of flexible working arrangements, the disciplinary-specific approach to researching fathering and workplace flexibility has resulted in a fragmented or siloed approach to our understanding of fathering and flexible working (Burnett et al, 2010;Gornick & Meyers, 2003;Kossek & Lautsch, 2018), with this fragmentation persisting despite the obvious commonalties in research foci across the disciplines.…”

Methodological considerations in the use of audio diaries in work psychology: Adding to the qualitative toolkit

“…Examples include Xanthopoulou, Bakker, Demerouti, and Schaufeli's (2009) study of work engagement and financial returns; Zacher and Wilden's (2014) study of leadership and innovation; and Unger, Niessen, Sonnentag, and Neff's (2014) research on time allocation between work and private life. Whilst the majority of diary studies are quantitative in nature, some studies present findings from written qualitative diaries on a range of work psychology topics (Radcliffe & Cassell, 2015). Poppleton, Briner, and Keifer (2008) used qualitative diaries to explore work-non-work relationships and cite the advantages of the technique as capturing context, immediacy and complexity plus as yielding findings complementary to quantitative studies on similar topics.…”