Work–family conflict in context: The impact of structural and perceived neighborhood disadvantage on work–family conflict

Abstract

Despite increasing levels of work–family conflict (WFC) among North Americans, few scholars examine the broader contexts in which these conflicts occur. I address this gap by examining how the neighborhood of residence impacts WFC, with a focus on social inequality and disadvantage across neighborhoods. I hypothesize that neighborhood disadvantage may impact WFC directly—by introducing ambient stressors that inhibit individuals from successfully balancing competing domain demands, and indirectly—by undermining the psychological resources that would combat the harmful effects of disadvantaged contexts. Using individual and census-level data from Canada, I consider both objective and subjective measures of neighborhood disadvantage and find that, overall, individuals in more disadvantaged neighborhoods are worse off because these contexts increase WFC, while reducing the psychological resources that would otherwise buffer these deleterious effects. However, some of these associations vary by gender. I discuss the broader implications of these findings for neighborhood effects and WFC research.