562The “quiet revolution” and mental health? Associations between household-employment configurations and mental-health across 17 years

Abstract

Abstract Background Despite evidence that employed women report more time pressure and work-life penalties than employed men and other women, scant attention has been paid to the possible health effects of female labour-force participation. Methods This analysis examined associations between household labour-force arrangements and the mental health of men and women using 17 waves of data from the Household Income and Labour Dynamics Survey. Mental health was measured using the Mental Health Inventory (MHI-5). A five-category measure of household employment configuration was derived: dual full-time employed, male-breadwinner, female-breadwinner, shared part-time employment (both part-time) and male full-time/female part-time (1.5-earner). Using fixed effects regression methods, we examined the within-person effects of household employment configuration on mental health, controlling for time-varying confounders. Results For men, being in the female-breadwinner configuration was associated with poorer mental health compared to being in the 1.5-earner configuration (b-1.98, 95%CI -3.36, -0.61). The mental health of women was poorer when in the male-breadwinner configuration, compared to when in the 1.5-earner arrangement (b-0.89, 95%CI -1.56, -0.22). Conclusions The mental health of both men and women is poorer when not in the labour-force, either as a man in the female-breadwinner arrangement, or as a woman in the male-breadwinner arrangement. Key messages These results suggest that the mental health of women and men benefits from labour-force participation. The results are noteworthy for women, because they pertain to a sizeable proportion of the population who are not in paid employment, and highlight the need for policy reform to support women’s labour-force participation.