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Work-Family Bidirectional Conflicts & Their Impact on Working Mothers’ Job Satisfaction
Islam S, Alam MJ, Ahamed T ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study examines work-family conflicts experienced by 307 employed mothers in Bangladesh with children under 8 years old. It explores how time pressures and stress create conflicts between work and family responsibilities, and how these conflicts affect mothers' job satisfaction. The research finds that strain-based conflicts from family to work, and strain-based conflicts from work to family, reduce job satisfaction, but time-based work-family conflicts do not. The authors recommend workplaces adopt gender-neutral policies to support working mothers.
Key points
- Sample of 307 full-time employed mothers with at least one child under age 8 in Bangladesh
- Strain-based family-to-work conflict significantly reduces job satisfaction
- Strain-to-work-family conflict significantly reduces job satisfaction
- Time-based work-family conflict showed no substantial effect on job satisfaction
- Study recommends gender-neutral workplace policies and addressing gendered norms and structural barriers
Limitations
This study focuses on maternal employment outcomes and workplace satisfaction rather than child well-being. It does not measure impacts on children's health, development, protection, or participation.
Abstract
Abstract Married women’s employment rates have significantly increased in recent decades, especially for mothers of small children. Mothers’ increased labour market participation has worsened the conflicts between their jobs and family obligations, negatively impacting their employment results. The primary assumption made throughout this study is that time and stress are the leading predictors of work-family conflicts in both directions, e.g., from family to work and work to family. The analysis is predicated on a sample of 307 full-time employed mothers with at least one child under the age of 8. Findings indicate that both time-based and strain-based family-work conflict (FWC) and strain-based work-family conflict (WFC) significantly adversely impact working mothers' job satisfaction in Bangladesh. Conversely, our study demonstrated no substantial effect of time-based work-family conflicts on mothers’ job satisfaction. Thus, the current research simultaneously supports and contradicts the prevailing literature on work-family conflict (WFC) and family-work conflict (FWC). This study recommends that organisations and management adopt strategies that promote a gender-neutral workplace, enabling working mothers to strive and realise their full potential. The current study further stresses that addressing the ubiquities of gendered norms and structural barriers is imperative to delving into WFC & FWC for maximising mothers’ labour market outcomes.