Full-time working mothers are 40% more stressed, study finds
‘Work-family conflict is associated with increased psychological strain,’ researchers state
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Mothers who have two children and a full-time job have significantly elevated stress levels, new research has discovered.
A team of researchers from the University of Manchester and the University of Essex analysed data from more than 6,000 individuals collated by The UK Household Longitudinal Study.
The nationwide study, published in the British Sociological Association journal Sociology, gathers various information from households across the country including the working life of the inhabitants, their hormone levels, blood pressure and experiences with stress.
The researchers assessed the 11 biomarkers associated with chronic stress among the participants of the study.
According to their findings, the overall levels of biomarkers associated with chronic stress are 40 per cent higher among women who have two children and are working full-time jobs, in comparison to women who have no children and are also working full-time.
The overall levels of biomarkers associated with chronic stress are 18 per cent higher among mothers with one child and full-time jobs.
When an individual has experienced stress for an extended period of time, it may be defined as “chronic stress” or “long-term stress”, the Mental Health Foundation states.
Symptoms of chronic stress can include irritability, anxiety, depression, headaches and insomnia, according to The American Institute of Stress.
The researchers also discovered women with two children who were working reduced hours had chronic stress levels 37 per cent lower than mothers working jobs with inflexible hours.
Chronic stress levels among working fathers were also found to be lower when working reduced hours.
When conducting the study, the researchers adjusted the raw data to rule out the prospect of other lifestyle factors affecting their findings. These factors included such things as the women’s ages, their income, their ethnicity or education.
“Work-family conflict is associated with increased psychological strain, with higher levels of stress and lower levels of wellbeing,” the researchers said.
“Parents of young children are at particular risk of work-family conflict. Working conditions that are not flexible to these family demands, such as long working hours, could adversely impact on a person’s stress reactions.
“Repeated stressful events arising from combinations of social and environmental stressors and major traumatic life events result in chronic stress, which in turn affects health.”
The researchers said flexible hours could be beneficial to ensure workers were able to achieve a satisfactory work-life balance.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments