Browse > Article
http://dx.doi.org/10.6115/fer.2021.022

Study of the Social Wellbeing of Working Mothers of Preschool Children  

Choe, Myeong Ae (Department of Child Development and Family Studies, Pusan National University)
An, Jeong Shin (Department of Child Development and Family Studies, Pusan National University)
Publication Information
Human Ecology Research / v.59, no.3, 2021 , pp. 297-310 More about this Journal
Abstract
This study examined the social wellbeing of working mothers of preschool children with the aim of identifying relationships between social wellbeing and influencing factors, focusing on the individual, relationship, and work environment of the mothers. Data on 390 working mothers were used for this study. The data were analyzed using the SPSS 18.0 program and descriptive statistics. Pearson's correlation analyses and hierarchical regression analyses were performed. The results show that social wellbeing has significantly positive correlations with education, monthly household income, number of children, age of the first child(8 and over), social capital for childcare, division of childcare, maternal role values, spouse's beliefs about paternal parenting involvement, and family-supportive work environment, as well as significantly negative correlations with weekly working hours, sociological ambivalence, spouse's beliefs about father's breadwinner role and gender-role values, job overload, and gender-role attitudes of coworkers. In addition, hierarchical regression revealed that spouse's beliefs about paternal parenting involvement and a family-supportive work environment were significantly positive predictors of working mothers'social wellbeing, whereas working mothers'sociological ambivalence toward their roles, job overload, and gender-role attitudes of coworkers were significantly negative predictors of working mothers'social wellbeing. These results point to ways of changing education and policy to improve the social wellbeing of working mothers.
Keywords
working mothers; social wellbeing; sociological ambivalence; family-supportive work environment;
Citations & Related Records
Times Cited By KSCI : 3  (Citation Analysis)
연도 인용수 순위
1 Cha, S. E., & Han, K. H. (2006). The effect of marital, parental role quality and social resource on mental health: Focused on gender and employment difference. Journal of Family Relations, 11(3), 81-114.
2 Cho, Y. J., & Im, I. H. (2016). Development and validation of the Korean version of the maternal.paternal role belief scale. Journal of Early Childhood Education & Educare Welfare, 20(3), 69-100.
3 Choe, Y. J., & Kim, G. H. (2010). The relationship of personal variables, environmental supports, and buffering of the work-family multiplerole conflict among Korean employed mothers. Korean Journal of Counseling and Psychotherapy, 22(4), 1049-1073.
4 Connell, R. (2013). Gender and power: Society, the person and sexual politics. Cambridge: John Wiley & Sons.
5 Connidis, I. A. (2015). Exploring ambivalence in family ties: Progress and prospects. Journal of Marriage and Family, 77(1), 77-95. https://doi.org/10.1111/jomf.12150   DOI
6 Connidis, I. A., & McMullin, J. A. (2002). Sociological ambivalence and family ties: A critical perspective. Journal of Marriage and Family, 64(3), 558-567. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2002.00558.x   DOI
7 Fingerman, K. L., Pitzer, L., Lefkowitz, E. S., Birditt, K. S., & Mroczek, D. (2008). Ambivalent relationship qualities between adults and their parents: Implications for the well-being of both parties. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 63(6), 362-371. https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/63.6.P362   DOI
8 Carlson, D. S., Kacmar, K. M., Wayne, J. H., & Grzywacz, J. G. (2006). Measuring the positive side of the work-family interface: Development and validation of a work-family enrichment scale. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 68(1), 131-164. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2005.02.002   DOI
9 Lee, S. I., Lee, S. H., & Kwon, Y. I. (2007). Influence of family support and family-supportive organizational cultures on employed mothers' work-family conflict. Journal of Family Relations, 12(3), 29-57.
10 Lee, Y. H., Bang, M. J., & Oh, S. J. (2005). The effect of family supportive organizational culture on organizational commitment, work satisfaction, turnover intention, and family life satisfaction. Korean Journal of Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 18(3), 639-657.
11 Lee, Y. J., & Jin, M. J. (2013). Social capital and parental stress of married mothers with young children: Variations by employment status. Family and Environment Research , 51 (2), 229-239. https://doi.org/10.6115/khea.2013.51.2.229   DOI
12 Spitze, G., Logan, J. R., Joseph, G., & Lee, E. (1994). Middle generation roles and the well-being of men and women. Journal of Gerontology, 49(3), 107-116. https://doi.org/10.1093/geronj/49.3.S107   DOI
13 Suitor, J. J., Gilligan, M., & Pillemer, K. (2011). Conceptualizing and measuring intergenerational ambivalence in later life. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 66(6), 769-781. https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/gbr108   DOI
14 Thomas, L. T., & Ganster, D. C. (1995). Impact of family-supportive work variables on work-family conflict and strain: A control perspective. Journal of Applied Psychology, 80(1), 6-15. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.80.1.6   DOI
15 Wise, S., & Stanley, L. (1983). Breaking out: Feminist consciousness and feminist research. Boston, MA: Routledge & K. Paul.
16 Yang, H. J., & Lee, K. H. (2015). Relationship between negative and positive effects of multiple roles and career aspirations of employed mothers. Korean Journal of Counseling, 16(3), 155-174. https://doi.org/10.15703/kjc.16.3.201506.155   DOI
17 Yoon, J. Y. (2018, September). Gender discrimination in the workplace and the turnover of female workers. Paper presented at the 2018 Conference of the Korea Women's Development Institute, Seoul, Korea.
18 Zygowicz, S. D. (2006). Interpersonal complementarity and intergenerational ambivalence: Parent-adult child relationship (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Arizona State University, Tempe, the United States.
19 Park, H. Y., Kim, M. J., & Lee, K. I. (2020, October). The relationships among mother's gender role value, parenting sharing, family flexibility and subjective happiness: Focusing on regional (large cities/ townships) differences. Poster session presented at the 66th Conference of the Association of Families and Better Life, Seoul, Korea.
20 Seol, J. H., & Park, S. H. (2019). The effect of negative experience related to work-family multiple roles on internalizing problems of employed mothers with preschool children: The mediating effect of sociotropy. Korean Psychological Journal of Culture and Social Issues, 25(1), 55-77. https://doi.org/10.20406/kjcs.2019.2.25.1.055   DOI
21 Willson, A. E., Shuey, K. M., & Elder Jr, G. H. (2003). Ambivalence in the relationship of adult children to aging parents and in laws. Journal of Marriage and Family, 65(4), 1055-1072. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2003.01055.x   DOI
22 Lee, H. S. (2001). Effects of parenting experiences on job satisfaction and psychological well-being in employed women: Moderating effects of marital stress. Journal of Korean Home Management Association, 19(6), 197-206.
23 Park, J. A., & Oh, S. J. (2011). The relationship of work overload and unreasonable organizational climate to emotional exhaustion and mediating effects of psychological detachment. Korean Journal of Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 24(4), 809-833. https://doi.org/10.24230/kjiop.v24i4.809-833   DOI
24 Ye, H. S., & An, J. S. (2020). Differences in psychological characteristics and social support by role perception type of working mothers with preschool children. Journal of Family Relations, 25 (2), 123-141. https://doi.org/10.1177/0067205X8501500404   DOI
25 Yoo, G. S. (2008). The effects of family-friendly culture on employees'work-family balance and qualities of lives. Journal of Korean Home Management Association, 26(5), 27-37.
26 Yoo, G. S., Choi, Y. S., & Sung, M. A., (2003) Sourcebook of family theories and methods: A contextual approach. Seoul: Hawoo Publishing.
27 Yoo, H. S. (1999). Participation of household labor and marital satisfaction of employed wives and husband (Unpublished master's thesis). Sangmyeong University, Seoul, Korea.
28 Keyes, C. L. M. (1998). Social well-being. Social Psychology Quarterly, 61(2), 121-140. https://doi.org/10.2307/2787065   DOI
29 Keyes, C. L. M., & Ryff, C. D. (1998). Generativity in adult lives: Social structural contours and quality of life consequences. In D. P. McAdams & E. de St. Aubin (Eds.), Generativity and adult development: How and why we care for the next generation (pp. 227-263). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
30 Kim, E. H., Kim, J. S., Park, H. S., Kim, D. Y., & Kim, S. Y. (2017). The experience of sexism in the workplace, belief in a just world, and depression: Scale development and mediating effect analysis. The Korean Journal of Woman Psychology, 22(4), 643-667.   DOI
31 Kim, H. Y. (2015). A study on the impact of job demand characteristics on job stress (Unpublished master's thesis). Dankook University, Gyeonggi-do, Korea.
32 Park, J. H. (2018). The moderating effect of spousal support and support systems for work-family compatibility on work-family conflict and psychological well-being of working mothers. Journal of Family Resource Management, 22(3), 43-59.
33 Pillemer, K., & Suitor, J. J. (2002). Explaining mothers' ambivalence toward their adult children. Journal of Marriage and Family, 64(3), 602-613. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2002.00602.x   DOI
34 Putney, N. M., & Bengtson, V. L. (2001). Families, intergenerational relationships, and kinkeeping in midlife. In M. E. Lachman (Eds.), Handbook of midlife development (pp. 528-570). New York: John Wiley and Sons.
35 Ross, C., Mirowsky, J., & Goldsteen, K. (1990). Impact of the family on health: The decade in review. Journal of Marriage and Family, 52(4), 1059-1078. https://doi.org/10.2307/353319   DOI
36 Shin, D. E. (2015). The effects of organizational characteristics on work-life balance of Korean women managers. Korean Journal of Social Issues, 27(2015), 127-166.
37 Shin, H. R., Lee, N. R., & Lee, S. H. (2014). Family-supportive organizational cultures and family leisure experiences for full-time employers. Journal of Family Relations, 18(4), 71-93.
38 Song, G. R., & Jeong, E. J. (2019). The effect of married woman's job stress and mindfulness on the psychological well-being The moderated mediation effect of self-regulation. Korean Journal of Interdisciplinary Therapy, 11(1), 5-33.
39 Kim, J. H. (2011). The effects of employed and unemployed mother's parenting efficacy and parental role satisfaction on life-satisfaction. Family and Environment Research, 49 (5), 49-57. https://doi.org/10.6115/khea.2011.49.5.049   DOI
40 Kim, K. A., & Hwang, H. W. (2010). A study on the factors that influence the psychological well-being of dual-earner couples. Social Science Research, 26(1), 143-168.
41 Kim, S. J. (2016). Married working women's work-family conflict and facilitation on depression. Korean Journal of Social Welfare Studies, 47(3), 161-185. https://doi.org/10.16999/kasws.2016.47.3.161   DOI
42 Kim, S. Y., Kim, S. M., & Lee, K. Y. (2011). A qualitative study on dual earner families'work and family lives for ideal work-family balance. Journal of Family Resource Management, 15(1), 93-116.
43 Kim, H. W., & Kim, M. S. (1998). Psychological effect of employment on married women in relation to the women's gender-role and sonpreference attitudes. The Korean Journal of Woman Psychology, 3(1), 35-50.
44 Keum, J. H., & Kim, D. S. (2014). The casual relationship among the father's participation in childcare, job satisfaction, parenting stress, and marital satisfaction of working mother. Family and Environment Research, 52(2), 141-150. https://doi.org/10.6115/fer.2014.52.2.141   DOI
45 Kim, E. J., & Jeon, K. Y. (2016). The influence of perception gap of dualincome parents about paternal involvement on marital conflict: Mediating effects of maternal self-efficacy and depression. Family and Environment Research, 54(5), 487-498. https://doi.org/10.6115/fer.2016.038   DOI
46 Kim, N. H., Lee, E. J., Kwak, S. Y., & Park, M. R. (2013). A phenomenological study on the experiences of parenting burden of working mother with young children in Korea. Korean Journal of Women Health Nursing, 19(3), 188-200. https://doi.org/10.4069/kjwhn.2013.19.3.188   DOI
47 Lee, S. S. (2013). A study on ambivalence of elderly parents toward their adults children. Korean Journal of Human Ecology, 22(6), 633-647.   DOI
48 Lowenstein, A. (2007). Solidarity-conflict and ambivalence: Testing two conceptual frameworks and their impact on quality of life for older family members. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 62(2), 100-107. https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/62.2.S100   DOI
49 Osmond, M. W., & Martin, P. Y. (1975). Sex and sexism: A comparison of male and female sex-role attitudes. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 37(4), 744-758. https://doi.org/10.2307/350825   DOI
50 Luscher, K. (2005). Looking at ambivalence: The contribution of a "new - old" view of intergenerational relations to the study of the life course. Advances in Life Course Research, 10, 93-128.   DOI
51 Mason, K. O., & Bumpass, L. L. (1975). US women's sex-role ideology, 1970. American Journal of Sociology, 80(5), 1212-1219.   DOI
52 McMullin, J. (1995). Theorizing gender and age. In S. Arber & J. Ginn (Eds.), Connecting gender and aging: A sociological approach (pp. 30-41). Philadelphia: Open University Press.
53 McMullin, J. (2000). Diversity and the state of sociological aging theory. Gerontologist, 40(5), 517-530. https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/40.5.517   DOI
54 Mehrotra, J., & Gebeke, D. (1992, November). Emerging factors in work/family interference. Paper presented at the Annual Conference of the National Council on Family Relations, Orlando, FL.
55 Mun, J. H., & An, J. S. (2014). The ambivalence of adult children toward elderly parents. Journal of the Korean Gerontological Society, 34(2), 409-429.
56 Greenberger, E., & O'Neil, R. (1993). Spouse, parent, worker: Role commitments and role-related experiences in the construction of adults' well-being. Developmental Psychology, 29(2), 181-197. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.29.2.181   DOI
57 Grzywacz, J. G., & Marks, N. F. (2000). Reconceptualizing the work- family interface: An ecological perspective on the correlates of positive and negative spillover between work and family. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 5 (1), 111-126. https://doi.org/10.1037/1076-8998.5.1.111   DOI
58 Byron, K. (2005). A meta-analytic review of work-family conflict and its antecedents. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 67(2), 169-198. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2004.08.009   DOI
59 Cho, Y. J., & Lee, S. H. (1998). Employed mothers' work-family conflict and social support variables. Human ecology research institute, 12(1998), 94-103.
60 Emslie, C., & Hunt, K. (2009). 'Live to work'or 'work to live'? A qualitative study of gender and work-life balance among men and women in mid life. Gender, Work & Organization, 16(1), 151-172. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0432.2008.00434.x   DOI
61 Jeon, S. H. (2014). The effects of female teachers' participation in family affairs and child rearing on their job stress and teacher efficacy (Unpublished master's thesis). Gangwon University, Gangwon-do, Korea.
62 Lee, H. W., & Lee, D. Y. (2020). The multifaceted effects of work overload: An application of attribution theory. Korean Society and Public Administration, 31(3), 107-126.
63 Lee, J. W., & Kum, H. S. (2020). Working women's life satisfaction, couples'gender role attitude and the division of housework. Family and Culture, 32(1), 34-69. https://doi.org/10.21478/family.32.1.202003.002   DOI
64 Lee, M. R. (2013). The effects of self-support program women participants' work-family conflict on their quality of life. Journal of Community Welfare, 44, 67-97. https://doi.org/10.15300/jcw.2013.03.44.67   DOI
65 Lee, S. H., Kim, M. S., & Park, S. K. (2008). A test of work-to-family conflict mediation hypothesis for effects of family friendly management on organizational commitment and turnover intention. Korean Journal of Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 21(3), 383-410.   DOI
66 Mun, J. H., & An, J. S. (2019). The moderation effect of cognitive emotion regulation on the relationship between ambivalence and psychological well-being of middle aged children. Korean Journal of Human Ecology, 28(3), 247-258. https://doi.org/10.5934/kjhe.2019.28.3.247   DOI
67 NICHD. (1999). NICHD Study of Early Child Care . Retrieved March 5, 2021, from http://public.rti.org/secc/
68 Ozeki, C. (2003). The effects of a family-supportive work environment on work-to-family conflict, family-to-work conflict, and emotional exhaustion. Does income level matter? (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Michigan State University, East Lansing, the United States.
69 An, J. S., & Choe, M. A. (2020). Study about ambivalence and desire for child birth by working mothers: Focusing on mediation effect of multiple-role efficacy. Family and Environment Research, 58(3), 391-400. https://doi.org/10.6115/fer.2020.028   DOI
70 An, S. H. (2005). The impact of child care and social support on the psychological well-being of employed mothers with young children. Early Childhood Education Research & Review, 9(4), 311-327.
71 Barnett, R. C., & Hyde, J. S. (2001). Women, men, work, and family: An expansionist theory. American Psychologist, 56(10), 781-796. https://doi.org/10.1037//0003-066x.56.10.781   DOI
72 Bonney, J. F., & Kelley, M. (1996). Development of a measure assessing maternal and paternal beliefs regarding the parental role: The beliefs concerning the parental role scale (Unpublished manuscript). Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA.
73 Thompson, C. A., Beauvais, L. L., & Lyness, K. S. (1999). When work-family benefits are not enough: The influence of work-family culture on benefit utilization, organizational attachment, and work-family conflict. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 54(3), 392-415. https://doi.org/10.1006/jvbe.1998.1681   DOI
74 Guo, M., Chi, I., & Silverstein, M. (2013). Sources of older parents'ambivalent feelings toward their adult children: The case of rural China. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 68(3), 420-430. https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/gbt022   DOI
75 Han, H. R., & Lee, J. M. (2018). Effect of gender role attitude and work.family balance perceived by married career women on life stress: The mediating effect of marital intimacy. Family and Environment Research, 56(5), 425-433. https://doi.org/10.6115/fer.2018.031   DOI
76 Han, I. H. (2015). A study on workplace discrimination and the health of female workers. Korean Journal of Sociology, 12(2015), 271.
77 Han, J. Y. (2014). The research on factors influencing the mother's intention to give birth to the second child (Unpublished master's thesis). University of Seoul, Seoul, Korea.
78 Han, Y. S. (2011). Subjective awareness on division of household labor and fairness of married men and women (Unpublished master's thesis). Sangmyeong University, Seoul, Korea.
79 Im, H. R., & Hong, S. P. (2020). Work-family transfer types and influencing factors of female managers. The Women's Studies, 105(2), 39-68.   DOI
80 Caplan, R. D., & Jones, K. W. (1975). Effects of work load, role ambiguity, and type A personality on anxiety, depression, and heart rate. Journal of Applied Psychology, 60(6), 713-719. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.60.6.713   DOI
81 Kang, H. J., & Yoo, K. S. (2005). A study of sharing housework and child care in dual-earner couples: Focused on restraining and driving factors. Family and Culture, 17(3), 187-219.
82 Kang, K. W., & Jang, J. Y. (2016). The structural relationship among work overload, psychological detachment, work-Family conflict and life satisfaction on married workers. Korean Journal of Counseling, 17(3), 419-440. https://doi.org/10.15703/kjc.17.3.201606.419   DOI
83 Jeong, J. H. (1983) The effects of mothers'gender-role attitude on their daughters (Unpublished master's thesis). Sookmyung Women's University, Seoul, Korea.