Cracking Under Pressure? Gender Role Attitudes Toward Maternal Employment During COVID-19 in Germany

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic posed unprecedented challenges to gender equality, particularly affecting working parents due to disruptions in daycare and school operations. It also impacted labor market opportunities for both men and women. This study investigates shifts in gender role attitudes toward maternal employment in Germany during pandemic lockdowns and subsequent periods of eased restrictions, using combined data from 2008 to early 2022. During the lockdown in early 2021, the study documents a significant decline in egalitarian attitudes, especially for men with dependent children and women without dependent children in the household. The results are discussed and interpreted against the background of various theoretical approaches. During periods of eased restrictions in early 2022, the trend reversed, and gender role attitudes recovered significantly for the same groups. The findings imply that pandemic-related changes in gender role attitudes toward maternal employment were largely transitory. HIGHLIGHTS Gender role attitudes became less egalitarian during the 2021 COVID-19 lockdown in Germany. When restrictions lifted, egalitarian gender role attitudes returned, indicating the changes were largely transitory. Mothers of dependent children, who shouldered most of the additional care burden, demonstrated remarkable stability in views on gender roles. Norm-setting, social diffusion, cognitive dissonance, and defense of a cultural worldview explain variance by gender and presence of children in the household. Public support for maternal employment and childcare infrastructure is important for shaping societal norms.