“Mummy is in a Call”: Digital Technology and Executive Women’s Work–Life Balance

Beáta Nagy

doi:10.17645/si.v8i4.2971

Abstract

Research findings confirm the contradictory impact of mobile technology on work–life balance, as these tools both guarantee greater flexibility and contribute to blurring boundaries between private and working spheres. Several articles have been published on women executives’ work–life balance in Western countries; however, their usage of mobile devices remained almost unexplored in the post-socialist region, where in the wake of the transformation not only the unquestioned neoliberal change of the corporate sector but also refamilisation took place. This article gives an overview on the issue of how women executives make use of mobile technology during their everyday activities in Hungary, where not only are the signs of ‘corporate colonization’ present, but also motherhood plays an important role. Based on twenty semi-structured interviews with Hungarian women in senior management positions carried out in 2014 and 2015, the article discusses the perceptions and narratives explained by these women. Results contribute to the ongoing debate on the paradoxical impacts of modern technology on work–life balance and its specificities in the post-socialist context.

Highlights

Almost all research findings confirm the contradictory impact of mobile technology on work–life balance: While widespread use of mobile technology facilitates the coordination of various tasks, there is a danger of employees active in knowledge intensive sectors being engaged with work not just anywhere and anytime but more like everywhere and all the time (Crowe & Middleton, 2012; Dén-Nagy, 2014; Kossek, 2016; Towers, Duxbury, Higgins, & Thomas, 2006; Wajcman, Rose, Brown, & Bittman, 2010)
New turns, often labelled as postfeminist or neoliberal, further advocate for the importance of individual responsibility and agency. This rhetoric and imagery increasingly underline the importance of individual choice even in questions of gender equality and work–life balance, reinforcing gendered tensions of work–life balance (Adamson, 2017; Sørensen, 2017)
The article has a twofold contribution to the research of technologies and work–life balance

Summary

Introduction

Almost all research findings confirm the contradictory impact of mobile technology on work–life balance: While widespread use of mobile technology facilitates the coordination of various tasks, there is a danger of employees active in knowledge intensive sectors being engaged with work not just anywhere and anytime but more like everywhere and all the time (Crowe & Middleton, 2012; Dén-Nagy, 2014; Kossek, 2016; Towers, Duxbury, Higgins, & Thomas, 2006; Wajcman, Rose, Brown, & Bittman, 2010).Despite the continuously growing working hours and work pressure, which are accelerated by the easy access to employees’ private life, limited complaints have been formulated among managers regarding organiza-Social Inclusion, 2020, Volume 8, Issue 4, Pages 72–80 tions’ potential responsibility to ease this. Despite the continuously growing working hours and work pressure, which are accelerated by the easy access to employees’ private life, limited complaints have been formulated among managers regarding organiza-. New turns, often labelled as postfeminist or neoliberal, further advocate for the importance of individual responsibility and agency. This rhetoric and imagery increasingly underline the importance of individual choice even in questions of gender equality and work–life balance, reinforcing gendered tensions of work–life balance (Adamson, 2017; Sørensen, 2017). The article has a twofold contribution to the research of technologies and work–life balance. It depicts how naturally top-level managers at large companies in a post-socialist Central and Eastern

Methods

Results

Conclusion