Inflexibility in mothers’ work schedule associated with behavior problems in children

Building on earlier research linking work schedule inflexibility with parenting stress, a new article in the Journal of Family Issues links mothers’ perceived work schedule inflexibility to child behavior problems at age five. With data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, the authors found a small, but statistically significant, association between mothers’ work schedule inflexibility and children’s behavior problems at age five. Modeling showed that mothers’ depressive symptoms and parenting stress partially explained the association. These findings suggest increasing access to flexible work schedules for mothers could support family wellbeing, although it is not yet clear how widespread these effects might be, as the FFCWS sample is limited to children predominantly born to unmarried parents in urban areas. #workforce #mentalhealth