scholarly journals Female academics’ views on work-life conflict in a Covid-19 global pandemic in Nigeria

Author(s):  
Samson Adeoluwa Adewumi ◽  
Princess Thulile Duma

Remarking on the importance of managing the existential conflict between work and family responsibilities, emphasis on female academics in a COVID-19 era in Nigeria has received diminutive research attention. The study seeks to address this research gap by interrogating women's views of work-life conflict narrative in a COVID-19 era. The exploratory research design was employed to expand the limit of the research gap and a total of 19 female academics were y recruited for interviews. The NVivo (v.12) qualitative software was employed to identify themes from the data and content analysis used to make sense of the various themes. The paper shows evidence of cultural bias in the recruitment and placement of female academics with social constraints hindering female academic capacity development. The long hours of teaching and consultation depict an indicator of work-life conflict with consequences on family support and emotional care for family and dependents. The need to acquire higher education qualifications on the part of females is also established as a pointer for the provocation of work-life conflict during the COVID-19 pandemic. The significance of lockdown constitutes major constraints for parenting mothers in the areas of combining home front responsibilities with work activities such as teaching, supervision, and the requirement of building a competitive career and research portfolio. The study concludes for a more robust measure in ensuring practical and realistic work-life conflict management strategies are introduced by managers of the University in order to aid the conflict between work and family responsibilities for female academics.

2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 288-305 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey A. Graham ◽  
Marlene A. Dixon

Work–family balance in sport has until this point largely been characterized as an issue for women. Current societal trends, however, suggest that men also struggle with balancing work and family responsibilities. Using theoretical frameworks from both conflict and enrichment, this study examined the ways that fathers who are coaches experience and manage the work–life interface. Twenty-four men who are fathers and high school varsity head coaches were interviewed for this study. The respondents discussed the day-to-day challenges and coping strategies they utilized to manage their work–life interface. Ultimately, five themes emerged from the data, including (a) coaching as more than an occupation, (b) experiences of conflict and strain, (c) coping strategies, (d) nonutilization of organizational supports, and (e) experiences of enrichment. These findings suggest that, indeed, men struggle with balancing competing role demands. However, the findings also suggest that men are utilizing diverse and creative approaches for managing their fathering and coaching roles, resulting in meaningful experiences of enrichment stemming from both coaching and fathering.


2011 ◽  
Vol 3 (8) ◽  
pp. 11-13
Author(s):  
Kaur, Anmol Preet ◽  
◽  
De K. K De K. K ◽  
Tripathy Manas Ranjan

Pravaha ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 217-232
Author(s):  
Tej Narayan Prasad Nepali

Work- family balance” is a term that refers to an individual’s perceptions of the degree to which s/he is experiencing positive relationships between work and family roles, where the relationships are viewed as compatible and at equilibrium with each other. Like a fulcrum measuring the daily shifting weights of time and energy allocation between work and family life, the term, “workfamily balance,” provides a metaphor to countervail the historical notion that work and family relationships can often be competing, at odds, and conflicting.There was a time when the boundaries between work and home were fairly clear. Today, however, work is likely to invade our personal life — and maintaining work-life balance is no simple task. Family work balance is a complex issue that involves financial values, gender roles, career path, time management and many other factors. Every person and couple will have their own preferences and needs. The problem of maintaining a balance between work life and family life is not a new one. But in the recent few years social scientists have started paying more attention to it. Now there is growing concern in Nepal and experts are of the view that a constant struggle to balance both sets of life will have serious implications on the health of an employee.The seriousness of this problem increases many times in the cases of women workers in our society which is a traditional one and where women are still supposed to have greater family responsibilities. They are expected to look after their children, entertaining the guest, taking care of their parents, in laws and other elderly members of their families as also managing kitchen and other household affairs. Neglecting any of these responsibilities for the sake of discharging work in office or in other institutions where they are employed is not tolerated by their husbands and other male members of the society. We talk of women empowerment but we fail to understand the problems which working women are facing in the tradition bound society like of ours. The study is a pioneering work to investigate into this problem. It is a modest attempt to understand the manner in which women workers try to maintain balance between their work and family lives. The study also explores the ways and means by which female workers can be enabled to maintain proper balance between the two sets of their lives. The findings of this study may be of great use to employers, and business executives as well, who have now come to realize that the responsibility to maintain a healthy work life balance rests on both the organisation and employee. Pravaha Vol. 24, No. 1, 2018, Page: 217-232


2016 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 206-216 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abe N. Ethel ◽  
Ziska Fields ◽  
Atiku O. Sulaiman

The inability of workers to achieve balance between work and family responsibilities has led to heightened incidence of illnesses associated with stress. The main objective of this paper is to investigate the role of Sense of Coherence (SOC) on the achievement of work life balance by focusing on individual managers at a municipality in the South African public service. These individual managers often struggle with work-life balance (WLB) challenges like HIV/AIDS, relational tension, single parenthood, child and elder care, alcohol and substance abuse, debt and financial issues, absence of job autonomy, function vagueness/role conflict and job stress. A sequential transformative mixed methods research design is adopted. Data were collected using self-report questionnaire administered to 364 individual managers; additional eleven members of top management were interviewed. Quantitative data gathered are analyzed using the IBM Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22 to test the reliability and validity of the instrument as well as the bivariate association between the variables. NVIVO is used in organizing qualitative data for ease of content analysis. The findings indicate that SOC should be considered when designing strategies to address employee work-life needs. Furthermore, it confirmed that the presence of strong SOC does not lead to achievement of WLB


Author(s):  
Vibhuti Tripathi ◽  
Sakshi Misra Shukla ◽  
Kadambari Randev

Despite the growing prominence in the work force, working mothers are still found to be juggling hard between work and family responsibilities with their increasing share of dilemmas and disparities. The paper studies the determinants of work life balance of working mothers and the potential sources of stress specific to working mothers and their consequences. The study addresses the main research objective which was to find out solutions to ease the dilemma that a working mother encounters while dividing her energy and capabilities between parenting, work, relationships and self. The survey was conducted in the city of Allahabad and 100 working mothers were surveyed on a structured questionnaire. SPSS software was used to analyze the data with the help of statistical tools like frequency, cross tabulation, chi square and Z test. The major findings of the survey highlighted that working mothers are mostly stressed with their primary responsibility of motherhood to the extent of forgetting one’s own well-being and physical health. The study recommends significant ways to balance work and family and achieve the most desired contentment of a working mother. The study reassures working mothers by reinventing, evolving and transitioning positively through the trials of working motherhood with knowledge, practice, strength and fulfillment. The modern work environment needs to reconsider the special needs of this working population, changing its orientation from male dominance to gender neutrality and parenting friendly behavior. Last but not the least, the family as a whole, needs to adjust accordingly, to the needs of the working mother so as to allow a healthier family to develop and grow consistently.


2019 ◽  
pp. 301-326
Author(s):  
Julie Boiché ◽  
Johan Caudroit

This chapter presents an extensive review of the research conducted to date on passion and conflict between an array of passionate activities and other domains, with a special focus on available results regarding passion for work. The behavioral and psychological mechanisms underlying the relationship between passion and conflict, and especially the case of work–family conflict, are identified. Various forms of work-life conflict are delineated according to their core process (time-, strain- or behavior-based) and direction (work-family versus family-work conflict). The chapter more particularly focuses on the potential mediator role of several variables (including work time, work and family-specific behaviors, cognitions such as rumination, affects such as role tension) and the possible moderating role of other variables (sociodemographic variables, work and family characteristics). Theoretical and practical implications are offered, as well as suggestions for future research.


2020 ◽  
Vol 34 (5) ◽  
pp. 760-789
Author(s):  
C. Elizabeth Hirsh ◽  
Christina Treleaven ◽  
Sylvia Fuller

As workers struggle to combine work and family responsibilities, discrimination against workers based on their status as caregivers is on the rise. Although both women and men feel the pinch, caregiver discrimination is particularly damaging for women, because care is intricately tied to gendered norms and expectations. In this article, we analyze caregiver discrimination cases resolved by Canadian Human Rights Tribunals from 1985 through 2016, to explore how work and caregiving clash. We identify issues involved in disputes and the ways gendered expectations about work–life facilitation inform disputes and outcomes. We find that although women are more likely to bring claims and obtain favorable outcomes, the legal interpretation of claims is highly gendered. Women bring claims involving both their presumed status as caregivers and the practical challenges of seeking accommodations for care, whereas men’s claims are largely accommodation based. In adjudicating cases, Tribunals are more likely to see women than men as lacking credibility when making their claims, questioning their competence and legitimacy. In contrast, men struggle to demonstrate the legal basis of work–family interference, failing to convey how seriously work interferes with family responsibilities.


2014 ◽  
Vol 43 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adem Sav ◽  
Neil Harris ◽  
Bernadette Sebar

Purpose – This study explores how Australian Muslim men cope with potential conflict and achieve feelings of balance between their work, family and religious roles. Design/methodology/approach – The study is guided by the interpretive paradigm and is qualitative. Data is collected from participants via semi-structured in-depth interviews (n=20) and analysed using thematic analysis. Findings – Personal coping strategies (e.g. making permanent changes and time management) seem more effective in coping with immediate conflict and achieving work-life balance as opposed to external ones (e.g. supervisor support). Although some of the strategies mirror existing research, their extent of use and reasons for usage by Muslim men are different. Muslim men use these strategies in a preventive manner to actively achieve work-life balance rather than just cope with episodic work-life conflict. Research limitations/implications – The study is conducted with a small sample and the findings may not be generalizable to non-practising Australian Muslim men. To date, research has not clearly articulated how people who do not experience work-life conflict, make decisions to achieve balance. This study has a positive look at a negative issue by indicating that workers can go beyond coping with conflict and explore avenues to achieve work-life balance. The findings underscore the importance of preventive coping in achieving work-life balance and caution researchers about investigating how people cope with immediate work-life conflict only. Originality/value – In addition to work and family roles, this study focuses on religious commitments, with religion being a largely overlooked concept within the work-family coping literature.


2016 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 230-247 ◽  
Author(s):  
Line Holth ◽  
Ann Bergman ◽  
Robert MacKenzie

Set in the context of the Swedish state’s agenda of dual emancipation for women and men, the article shows how a global ICT consultancy company’s formal gender equality goal is undermined by competing demands. Employing the concept of availability, in preference to work–life balance, the research found women opted out of roles requiring high degrees of spatial and temporal availability for work, in favour of roles more easily combined with family responsibilities. Such choices led to poor career development, plus the loss of technological expertise and confidence. These outcomes were at odds with the company’s gender equality aims, as well as government objectives to make it easier for women and men to combine work and family, and increase the number of women within ICT.


Sociology ◽  
2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Misun Lim ◽  
Joya Misra

There are many different ways to define work–life balance. Some scholars emphasize that work–life balance requires balancing demands of both paid work and family responsibilities or maximizing satisfaction by minimizing conflict between paid work and family responsibilities. Others view work–life balance as encompassing the way that boundaries blur between work, family, and leisure time. In attempting to address work–life balance, workers are generally trying to preserve both quality of life, and potential for career advancements, while employers are trying to preserve high productivity and reduce worker turnover. Although the term “work–life balance” is widely used, alternative terms are also employed, such as work–family balance, work–life integration, work–life harmonization, or work–life articulation. Research on attempts to manage paid work along with family and other parts of life has been carried out for decades. Yet this scholarship has exploded in the last two decades, particularly as middle-class women have increased their workforce participation, but also work is being carried out during nonstandard hours, technology is creating more permeability between work and home, and union protections have been weakened. Work–life balance efforts may lead to poor-quality jobs in terms of earnings, job security, working time and promotion opportunities, rather than long-term quality employment over the life course that allows for leisure and family time. Research on work–life balance should take structural, rather than individual approaches, to consider workplace cultures, including by occupation and gender inequality, and recognize the different assumptions underlying policies aimed at addressing work–life balance.


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