scholarly journals Gender Equality in Europe and the Effect of Work-Family Balance Policies on Gender-Role Attitudes

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vera Lomazzi ◽  
Sabine Israel ◽  
Isabella Crespi
Keyword(s):  
Gender Role ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
National Income ◽  
Gender Role Attitudes ◽  
Gender Mainstreaming ◽  
Dual Earner ◽  
Family Model ◽  
Family Balance ◽  
Work Family Balance ◽  
Work Family

This study starts from the assumption that the context of opportunities for work-family balance affects individual attitudes toward gender roles, a main indicator of support for gender equality. Compared with extant research, the present study adopts a more articulated definition of “opportunity structure” that includes national income level and social norms on gender attitudes, measures of gender-mainstreaming policies implemented at the company level (flextime), and different work-family balance policies in support of the dual-earner/dual-caregiver family model (e.g., parental-leave schemes and childcare provisions). The effects of these factors are estimated by performing a cross-sectional multilevel analysis for the year 2014. Gender-role attitudes and micro-level controls are taken from the Eurobarometer for all 28 European Union (EU) members, while macro-indicators stem from Eurostat, European Quality of Work Survey, and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Our results show that both institutional and workplace arrangements supporting the dual-earner/dual-caregiver family model are associated with more egalitarian gender-role attitudes This is particularly true concerning availability of formal childcare for 0- to 3-year-olds among institutional factors, as well as work-schedule flexibility among workplace factors, probably as they enable a combination of care and paid work for both men and women.

European gender cultures

2019 ◽  
pp. 101-122
Author(s):  
Vera Lomazzi ◽  
Isabella Crespi
Keyword(s):  
Gender Role Attitudes ◽  
Gender Mainstreaming ◽  
Working Parents ◽  
Socially Constructed ◽  
Family Balance ◽  
Gender Regimes ◽  
Work Family Balance ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Work Family ◽  
Positive Effect

Wondering whethergender mainstreaming really supports the shift to a more gender-egalitarian Europe,this chapter explores the intertwined relation between individual gender role attitudes, gender regimes,and gender cultures in Europe. It investigates how structural aspects, which determine the opportunities available for men and women to achieve their goals, as well as cultural features, which establish socially constructed, predominant family models and legitimised gender roles, contribute to explaining individuals’ beliefs in gender equality. The chapter reports empirical evidence of the positive effect of work-family balance policies, which enshrines the gender mainstreaming principles, on the promotion of gender egalitarian beliefs. Thesepolicies and workplace practices allow working parents to combine their professional and personal responsibilities, directly affecting their opportunity structures. Because of such realistic opportunities, people tend to express more egalitarian views. At the same time, the implementation of work-family balance policies transmits a certain idea of a lifestyle model and family pattern, legitimising them through structural elements that contribute to changing current gender regimes.

scholarly journals The implications of work-family balance among dual-earner couples

2017 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 351-371 ◽  
Author(s):  
Toyin Ajibade Adisa ◽  
Ellis L.C. Osabutey ◽  
Gbolahan Gbadamosi
Keyword(s):  
Work Performance ◽  
Qualitative Methodology ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Medical Practitioners ◽  
Dual Earner ◽  
Family Balance ◽  
Work Family Balance ◽  
Work Family ◽  
Societal Problems

Purpose The implications of the work-family balance (WFB) of dual-earner couples are well known; however, the extant literature on this topic has failed to adequately explore the context of Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), specifically Nigeria. The purpose of this paper is to examine the implications of the WFB of dual-earner couples in Nigeria. Design/methodology/approach This paper employs a qualitative methodology in order to explore the effect of couples’ dual-earner status on their WFB in an African context by using Nigerian medical practitioners as the empirical focus. Findings The findings reveal that the dual-earner status provides some respite from financial hardship and improves family finances, which subsequently enhances WFB. However, the dual-earner status also has negative impacts on WFB in terms of work performance, dysfunctionality, and associated societal problems. Originality/value This paper provides insights into the WFB of dual-earner couples in the non-western context of SSA, highlighting the previously unexplored implications of dual-earner status in the context of SSA.

scholarly journals Work-Family Balance of Families with Small Children: How to Achieve Gender Equality in Parenting

2016 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-168
Author(s):  
Mieko Takahashi ◽  
Saori Kamano ◽  
Tomoko Matsuda ◽  
Setsuko Onode ◽  
Kyoko Yoshizumi
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Small Children ◽  
Family Balance ◽  
Work Family Balance ◽  
Work Family

Gender Mainstreaming and Gender Equality in Europe

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vera Lomazzi ◽  
Isabella Crespi
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Critical Evaluation ◽  
Gender Mainstreaming ◽  
Individual Values ◽  
Family Balance ◽  
Future Challenges ◽  
Common Strategy ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Work Family ◽  
The Individual

The book provides a systematic scientific overview of gender mainstreaming in Europe. It recalls the main steps of the origins and the development of the European gender mainstreaming (GM) strategy. The book also connects this framework with the current situation of gender equality and explores the strength and weak points of the strategy. To do so, it provides a critical evaluation of the instruments used to measure gender equality and explores how societal aspects, such as the opportunity structure defined by work-family balance policies and practices, affect the individual values of gender equality supporting the development of gender egalitarian cultures. Further, it develops an outline of the current and future challenges of the gender mainstreaming strategy, that run in parallel with the general European Union’s challenges, such as the integration process, economic crisis, migration and refugees crisis, and the rise of right-wing Euroscepticism. In addition, the old but always current problem of conceptualizing gender equality in different ways leading to jeopardized results. The book offers a critical review of the GM strategy in Europe and analyses whether and how gender equality in Europe is improving, with a specific interest in the cultural differences between the European countries where this common strategy is implemented.

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