On-site Child Care Research Articles

Mapping childcare support for patients at a sample of North American hospitals and cancer centers: an environmental scan.

Approximately a quarter of cancer patients are parents to young children. One unique challenge faced by this patient group is the difficulty of accessing childcare support during medical appointments. Hospital-based childcare options could represent a solution to this problem, but to this point, no comprehensive scans have described existing on-site childcare centers. The purpose of this study is to identify and characterize on-site childcare services available to patients at selected North American hospitals. This information could inform the development of similar programs for cancer patients. Using publicly available information, an environmental scan of the grey literature was conducted to investigate Canadian and American hospitals for the presence of childcare services. A standardized data collection tool was used to extract center characteristics. Twenty-six childcare centers were identified across 161 hospitals in both Canada and the USA, with 8/55 Canadian hospitals and 18/106 American hospitals having patient-accessible on-site services. The majority of the centers were associated with pediatric hospitals (77%). Only a single childcare center was associated with a cancer hospital. All centers accommodated children between the ages of 3 and 8. Most centers were open for over 30h per week (77%) and were free of charge to users (89%). Other characteristics, including capacity and staffing, varied widely. These results represent an inventory of patient-accessible, on-site childcare services currently available at selected North American hospitals. Cancer patients who are also parents may especially benefit from this kind of support.

Supporting parents: The effects of work-family policies on within-person productivity trends

Although multiple theories illustrate how policies affect work outcomes, theory and research do not fully explicate how work-family policies impact within-person job performance, especially after the birth of a child. To address these gaps, we examined the productivity trends (i.e., slopes) of 151 parents (n = 1,842 years) before and after the birth of their children. Then, we analyzed the impact of availability and use of onsite childcare and a flexible work arrangement on those productivity trends, along with examining gender differences in these effects. Our results suggest that productivity trends do not change after the birth of the first or second child for men or women. The availability of either work-family policy did not relate to productivity trends, whereas the use of onsite childcare after the birth of a child increased productivity trends and the flexibility work arrangement decreased productivity trends. Supplemental analyses demonstrate the robustness of the findings. Our work strengthens the theoretical understanding of human resource management policies and contributes critical insights for organizations and their performance management systems.

Voice User Interface-Based Artificial Intelligence enables Child Daycare Assistance System Framework

Daycare is a child-care alternative that permits guardians to drop off their kids during the day for care, management, and learning. Significantly, kids who participate in early child-care programs will be more beneficial and more fruitful in school. Child-care educators can share assets, thoughts and even get together in a nearby play area. Each parent has an alternate thought of what they need for their kids. There are various sorts of child-care offerings, Private child-care chains: An organization normally runs these as establishments, Private or independent nurseries: These are controlled by people or a group of people, home-based child-care: In India, this is a typical type of child-care, most of the time run by homemakers, Daycares connected to schools: Certain schools may decide to set up child-care appended to their school, Workplace childcares: Companies now and again have nearby child-care for youngsters. Several companies offer onsite child care support for their employees. Few organizations are Google, Johnson and Johnson, Boeing, Nike, Procter, Gamble, etc. Parents have the main concern that they want to know how their child is doing while they are away. Are their child's needs being met? Are they being heard when sharing important details about their child's care? Can they reach the facility at any time, and can staff reach parents regardless of where they are during the day? A central communication hub can help parents communicate important information such as dietary restrictions or special drop-off or pick-up instructions to address all these above concerns. Also, touch-free devices that would allow teachers to communicate hands-free, leaving them to focus on their most important task caring for children, require the hour. In this paper, a framework of voice user interface-based AI enables child daycare assistance system has been proposed that reviewed by baby sitters and parents.

Employees' preference for the on-site childcare service: a case study of three Sri Lankan apparel firms

PurposeChildcare is one of the main obstacles for women to enter the labour market as they are the primary caregivers for children. The struggle between childcare and women's employment has caused a high labour turnover in women-dominated industries. The aim of this study is to assess the employees’ willingness for an on-site childcare facilityDesign/methodology/approachThe primary goal of this study was to assess the employees' willingness for an on-site childcare facility using the contingent valuation method. For the analysis, 330 data were collected from all levels of the employees in three firms in the apparel industry using a survey-based questionnaire.FindingsThe results illustrate that the mean willingness to pay for the on-site childcare facility is substantially higher for the firm that already provide an on-site childcare facility than the other two firms that do not have childcare facilities. Among all employees who are surveyed, 86.36% of the employees favoured implementation of on-site childcare facilities. According to the survey findings, the newly hired employees have a higher preference for the childcare facility, however less likely to pay for the facility. The monthly income variable has a negative association with the probability of voting in favour of implementing on-site childcare facility. Moreover, the results indicate that the employees who have received the childcare facility have positive attitudes towards the on-site childcare facility.Originality/valueTo the authors' knowledge, prior case studies related to the evaluation of employee's preference for on-site childcare services have not been conducted in the context of industries in Sri Lanka. Therefore, the findings and implications were discussed while expanding the geographical scope of the past literature.

Effect of Access to Workplace Supports for Breastfeeding Among Formally Employed Mothers in Kenya

ObjectivesWe evaluated the availability of workplace breastfeeding (BF) supports, and the associations between these supports and BF practices among formally employed mothers in Kenya – where many women work in horticulture farms and legislation requiring workplace BF supports is being implemented. We hypothesized that the availability of supports would be associated with a higher prevalence and greater odds of exclusive breastfeeding (EBF). MethodsWe conducted repeated cross-sectional surveys among formally employed mothers at 1–4 days, 6 weeks, 14 weeks, and 36 weeks (to estimate 24 weeks) postpartum at 3 health facilities in Naivasha from Sept. 2018 to Oct. 2019, 13 months after the 2017 Kenyan Health Act, which requires workplace BF support, was passed. We evaluated the associations of workplace BF supports with EBF practices using tests of proportions and adjusted logistic regression. ResultsAmong formally employed mothers (n = 564), reported workplace supports included on-site housing (16.8%), on-site daycare (9.4%), and private lactation spaces (2.8%). Mothers who used workplace on-site childcare were more likely to practice EBF than mothers who used community- or home-based childcare at both 6 weeks (95.7% versus 82.4%, p = 0.030) and 14 weeks (60.6% versus 22.2%, p < 0.001; [aOR (95% CI) = 5.11 (2.3, 11.7)]. Likewise, mothers who visited daycares at or near workplaces were more likely to practice EBF (70.0%) compared to those who did not visit a daycare (34.7%, p = 0.005) at 14-weeks. Among all mothers, 84.6% with access to workplace private lactation spaces practiced EBF, compared to 55.6% without such spaces, p = 0.037. Mothers who live in on-site housing were twice as likely [aOR (95% CI) = 2.06 (1.25, 3.41)] to practice EBF compared to those without access to on-site housing. ConclusionsFormally employed mothers in Kenya who used on-site childcare, lived in on-site housing, and had access to private workplace lactation rooms are more likely to practice EBF than mothers who lack these supports, while the use of community-based childcare in this context is associated with a lower prevalence of EBF. As the Kenya Health Act is implemented, provision of these supports and strategies to help women visit their children in daycare can enable EBF among employed mothers. Funding SourcesNIH Fogarty International Center.

A post-COVID survey of current and future parents among faculty, trainees, and research staff at an NCI-designated cancer center.

11002 Background: Challenges for women in science and academic medicine have been well documented, which include gender disparities related to parental and domestic responsibilities that interfere with work or career opportunities. We aimed to evaluate the experiences and working environment at an NCI-designated Cancer Center for current and future parents in the post-COVID era. We hypothesized there would be differences in the experiences of parents between men and women, and between trainees, faculty, and staff. Methods: A 61-question online survey for current and future parents was developed by the Women’s Task Force of the Hillman Cancer Center (HCC) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Questions focused on perceived attitudes towards parents, the supportive nature of the working environment for parents, experiences with breastfeeding as a working parent, and childcare responsibilities pre- and post-COVID. The survey was sent to 562 scientific faculty, physicians, trainees, and research staff at HCC. Comparisons between groups of interest were performed using a chi-square test. Results: There were 214 respondents (38% response rate) with even representation: 38% were faculty, 27% were trainees, and 35% were research staff; 59% were female. 6% of respondents reported being “discouraged or excluded from participating in specific activities due to having or planning children”, and 24% felt “moderately supported” as a parent at work. Regarding breastfeeding, 58% reported that the decision to breastfeed was moderately impacted by returning to work, and of the women who were currently or recently breastfeeding, 42% reported that there were not enough lactation rooms in their building. Other questions in the survey aimed to evaluate what further support would be helpful for parents. 40% reported that on-site childcare would help better support them as a parent, especially because 47% documented that finding childcare was difficult and 53% documented that they looked at ≥4 daycares or nannies. Further, 49% reported that they did not know where to look for resources in finding childcare. Pre-COVID, 32% reported spending 2-3 hours a day on childcare and/or home responsibilities; post-COVID, 55% reported spending ≥4 hours a day. These effects were more pronounced in women compared to men (p &lt; 0.05). Pre-COVID, 40% reported that they were unable to participate in work events due to childcare responsibilities, which increased to 54% post-COVID, and was most pronounced in faculty and trainees compared to staff (p &lt; 0.05). Conclusions: Our survey describes some of the universal challenges of working parents in Oncology, which have been exacerbated by COVID. The impact of COVID was more pronounced in women. Further studies are needed for systematic interventions or policies that improve support for working parents, including unified resources and working groups for current and expecting parents.

Propping up the parents: An environmental scan of childcare programs available to cancer patients in North America.

e18805 Background: Approximately 20% of newly diagnosed cancer patients are between the ages of 20 and 54, and many of these patients are also the primary caregivers of children. Qualitative studies focusing on this demographic indicate that patients who are parents struggle to balance their own care needs with those of their children. Further, a lack of childcare support during cancer treatments can negatively impact compliance and increase existing psychological stress for patients. In the efforts to establish a child-minding program at a major Canadian cancer centre, we carried out an environmental scan to evaluate the current state of childcare support for cancer patients. Methods: Firstly, a literature scan was conducted in order to assess current knowledge about childcare and cancer patients, which included the use of search engines, directed internet searches, a review of oncology conference proceedings and websites of oncology associations. Literature was selected based on pre-determined criteria. Secondly, 12 representatives from major Canadian cancer centres (CCC) completed a questionnaire assessing current childcare strategies at their respective institutions. Finally, a broad scan of the grey literature was conducted by investigating 161 Canadian and American hospitals for on-site childcare services, using lay-accessible searching techniques (hand-searching hospital websites, phone and email correspondences). Results: The literature scan identified seventeen primary articles, which focused largely on exploring the role strain faced by patients who are also parents. A single study explored the instrumental challenges of being a parent with cancer, and formally assessed the childcare needs of these patients. The questionnaire results indicated that only two of the twelve investigated CCCs had established an approach to child-minding for patients. The grey literature scan identified twenty-six on-site, patient-accessible child-minding centres at hospitals in Canada and the US based on pre-determined inclusion criteria. Of these, 76.9% of centres were associated with pediatric hospitals, and 69.2% were located in the United States. Most centres (76.9%) were open for over 30 hours per week, and 88.5% of centres were free of charge to users. Conclusions: These findings generally indicate that a minority of Canadian and American hospitals and cancer centres have formal childcare services in place to support patients who are also parents. As cancer patients are at increased risk for financial toxicity, they may be particularly in need of this kind of instrumental support. This highlights the importance of carrying out a targeted needs assessment in order to fully elucidate the need for patient-accessible childcare services at CCCs.

Exclusive breastfeeding among working mothers in Kenya: Perspectives from women, families and employers.

Exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) for the first 6 months of life improves survival, growth and development. In Kenya, recent legislation and policies advocate for maternity leave and workplace support for breastfeeding and breast milk expression. We conducted a qualitative study to describe factors influencing EBF for 6 months among mothers employed in commercial agriculture and tourism. We interviewed employed mothers (n = 42), alternate caregivers and employed mothers' husbands (n = 20), healthcare providers (n = 21), daycare directors (n = 22) and commercial flower farm and hotel managers (n = 16) in Naivasha, Kenya. Despite recognizing the recommended duration for EBF, employed mothers describe the early cessation of EBF in preparation for their return to work. Managers reported supporting mothers through flexible work hours and duties. Yet, few workplaces have lactation spaces, and most considered adjusting schedules more feasible than breastfeeding during work. Managers and healthcare providers believed milk expression could prolong EBF but thought mothers lack experience with pumping. The most frequently suggested interventions for improving EBF duration were to expand schedule flexibility (100% of groups), provide on‐site daycare (80% of groups) and workplace lactation rooms (60% of groups), improve milk expression education and increase maternity leave length (60% of groups). Returning to work corresponds with numerous challenges including lack of proximate or on‐site childcare and low support for and experience with milk expression. These factors currently make EBF for 6 months unattainable for most mothers in these industries. Interventions and supports to improve breastfeeding upon return to work are recommended to strengthen employed mothers' opportunity for EBF.

Parenting Pressures Among Academic Pediatricians During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

* Abbreviation: COVID-19 — : coronavirus disease 2019 Pediatricians advocate for parent wellbeing as a component of child health, and most pediatricians are parents themselves, the majority with partners who also work.1 Yet academic departments of pediatrics inconsistently address workplace parent supports, which resulted in challenges for pediatrician parents even before the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. During the COVID-19 pandemic, pediatrician parents are experiencing work-related and parenting-related challenges that have spurred escalating concerns about work-life integration, burnout, and remaining in the academic workforce. We offer an approach for academic departments of pediatrics to support their faculty’s pandemic-related work-life integration, noting that such supports may benefit all faculty, parents and nonparents alike. We use the term “parent” broadly to include those with dependent-care responsibilities (eg, those caring for children, adults with disabilities, or elders) and parents-to-be (ie, pregnant or family building). “Women” is intended to include all those identifying as such. Although we focus here on academic pediatricians, the pandemic parenting load affects nonphysician colleagues as well as pediatricians in nonacademic positions; this similarly warrants attention. Supports for parenting pediatricians should be implemented by using an inclusive, team-centered approach that acknowledges that some supports for parenting physicians (eg, flexible clinic schedules) will impact other members of the health care team. Even before the pandemic, parenting pediatricians faced unique challenges to work-life integration compared with their nonparenting colleagues. Despite the preponderance of parents and women in academic pediatrics, many institutions do not yet provide robust family benefits that are increasingly available in other industries (eg, paid parental leave and back-up or on-site child care). … Address correspondence to Kimberly A. Randell, MD, MSc, Division of Emergency Medicine, Children’s Mercy, 2401 Gillham Rd, Kansas City, MO 64110. E-mail: karandell{at}cmh.edu

Effectiveness of Respondent-Driven Sampling for Conducting Health Studies Among Undocumented Immigrants at a Time of Heightened Immigration Enforcement.

This paper assessed the effectiveness of Respondent Driven Sampling (RDS) in recruiting undocumented Latinx immigrants for a prevalence health study at a time of heightened immigration enforcement. RDS was used to collect and analyze data from clinical interviews with 254 undocumented Latinx immigrant adults, enabling inference to a population of 22,000. 45% of the sample reported having a chronic medical condition. The desired sample size was achieved and exceeded with three initial recruits and 10 waves of recruitment across 9weeks. There was substantial cross-group mixing for recruitment in terms of sex and recency of immigration, which facilitated the emergence of diversity within recruitment chains. Primary factors that contributed to effective recruitment were location, flexibility, on-site childcare, and detailed explanation of the recruitment process. RDS is an effective recruitment method to study the health of undocumented Latinx immigrants, which is essential to informing intervention and policy.

Balancing Dual Roles in the Face of Missing On-Site Child Care Arrangements: Lived Experiences of Breast-Feeding Student Mothers at Kyambogo University

Through the use of a phenomenological approach this study explored lived experiences of breast-feeding student mothers in the face of missing institutionalized on-campus child care arrangements at Kyambogo University (KyU). Specifically, the study sought to; identify the missing institutionalized on-campus child care arrangements at the university, establish the dilemmas breast feeding student mothers experience in undertaking the dual roles of mother and student hood due to the missing institutionalized on campus child care arrangements at KyU and examine the effect of the missing institutionalized on campus child care arrangements on undertaking of academic activities by breast-feeding student mothers. A total of 10 breast feeding student mothers were interviewed and data was analyzed using themes. Results indicated that the following institutionalized on-campus child care arrangements were missing at Kyambogo University; adequately furnished baby care rooms, baby playgrounds, immunization and pediatric medical services, professional nannies, child care responsive; teaching time tables, teaching sessions, time frames for course work assignments, tests and examinations’ undertakings, and child care responsive-remedial lessons. Dilemmas of breast feeding student mothers’ in this scenario included choosing between; baby-sitting vs attending lectures, completing a lecture vs breastfeeding a crying hungry baby, undertaking child bonding activities vs undertaking academic activities, completing an exam or a test vs breast feeding a crying hungry baby, baby care vs attending academic group discussion and baby care vs completing a coursework assignment in time. Student mothers at KyU have devised means of coping and have learnt how to resolve the tension of combining motherhood and education in an academic environment without on-campus childcare arrangements so as to pave a brighter career and family future. Such strategies included; receiving child care support from family and student friends, use of privately hired nannies, ignoring one of the two roles, time tabling the activities for the two roles, creating extra time to read, and getting help from spouses. The voices of the interviewees revealed that when the two roles were in conflict, they would rather miss academic activities than abandon their babies especially in critical times like when the babies were sick. It was therefore recommended that KyU considers putting in place various instututionalised on campus arrangements as a critical resource that will enhance academic undertakings of breast-feeding student mothers in their pursuit of Higher Education.

Abstract 6: Parenting in Plastic Surgery Residency

Background: In 1994, Mackinnon and Mizgala advocated that plastic surgery residents should have access to adequate childcare facilities to promote a productive return to work.1 25 years later, the lack of accessible and affordable childcare remains a dilemma faced by many plastic surgery trainees. Our survey aims to evaluate the current status of childrearing during plastic surgery training. Methods: Following approval from The American Council of Academic Plastic Surgeons (ACAPS), an anonymous, voluntary, electronic survey was sent to current plastic surgery residents. Respondents were asked about their demographics, training program, basic financial information, current childcare accommodations and availability, as well as attitudes and issues surrounding childrearing during residency. Results: There were 32 respondents, 66% women and 34% men. Seventy-five percent of respondents were married, and 38% had ≥1 child, with no difference when stratified by gender. Seventy-five percent of male parents compared to twelve percent of female parents reported their spouse was the primary source of childcare. One-hundred percent of respondents with children reported that childcare creates a financial burden. Only 3% of respondents felt their institution provided services to arrange adequate childcare. Sixty-three percent of residents felt their training program did not allow flexibility to accommodate childcare needs. Female residents missed work twice as often as male residents and were twice as likely to require a co-resident to cover clinical duties due to difficulties finding childcare when compared to male residents (p=0.296, p=0.145, respectively). Sixty-seven percent of female residents agreed with the statement, “If you had to pick a residency program today, the availability of on-site childcare would influence your decision,” compared to only 9% of male residents, (p=0.002). Conclusion: Currently, training institutions are not meeting the childcare needs of plastic surgery trainees with children. If we as a specialty wish to continue to recruit and retain the most highly-qualified and well-rounded applicants, we must improve the accommodations for childcare for our trainees who are and who wish to become parents. To accomplish this goal, all training institutions with plastic surgery residency programs should provide affordable, accessible childcare that accommodates the 24-hour natures of both patient care and parenthood.

Family Leave and Return-to-Work Experiences of Physician Mothers

With the substantial increase in the proportion of women graduating from medical school, factors surrounding family leave require careful attention. Although many circumstances and experiences are unique to the training setting and specialty, a nationwide representation of physician mothers across all disciplines and all levels of training may reveal common themes and experiences among them, enable comparison across training setting and subspecialties, and identify best practices for supporting physician mothers throughout their careers. To characterize family leave and return-to-work experiences of physician mothers across subspecialties. This cross-sectional US nationwide survey study evaluating the experiences of 844 physician mothers was administered electronically via REDCap from September 2 to December 20, 2018. A survey was developed using a modified Delphi process with a panel of experts to characterize physician mothers' family leave and return-to-work experiences. The survey covered both negative and positive experiences of physician mothers for each child they conceived or adopted after medical school to identify areas for change and strategies for successfully supporting physician parents. Of 1465 potentially eligible survey respondents, 844 (57.6%) were verified as unique respondents with complete surveys. Their mean (SD) age was 35.8 (5.2) years (range, 27-67 years), with most women (826 [97.9%]) currently practicing and 138 women (16.4%) currently in a residency program. Participants were included from 19 subspecialty groups. Of the women surveyed, 619 (73.3%) felt that leave time was insufficient. The majority (751 [89.0%]) would have preferred 11 weeks to 6 months of leave vs the 5 to 12 weeks (often not paid) most commonly available. The most frequently reported negative experiences when returning to work were associated with lack of facilities for breast pumping (range, 12 of 78 [15.4%] for the third child to 272 of 844 [32.2%] for the first child) and time for breast pumping (range, 27 of 78 [34.6%] for the third child to 407 of 844 [48.2%] for the first child), difficulty obtaining childcare (eg, for the first child, 298 of 844 [35.3%]), and discrimination (eg, for the first child, 152 of 844 [18.0%]). The most common positive experience was emotional support (eg, for the first child, 504 of 844 [59.7%]), primarily from colleagues. The present study, capturing one of the largest and most heterogeneous samples of physician mothers, showed that a substantial number of women physicians working in a variety of specialties at all levels of training across the United States needed and wanted more support for maternity leave and return to work. Support at the institutional level, such as paid leave, adequate breast pumping time without penalty, on-site childcare, and schedule flexibility, would likely provide the greatest direct assistance to help physician mothers thrive in their careers.

Gender Bias, Discrimination Common in Academic Psychiatry

Gender Bias, Discrimination Common in Academic Psychiatry

Supporting Father Involvement: An Intervention With Community and Child Welfare–Referred Couples

ObjectiveTo expand the evidence base of the Supporting Father Involvement (SFI) intervention to include child welfare families.BackgroundTaking a preventive father‐inclusive approach, SFI aims to strengthen coparenting, parent–child relationships, and child outcomes. This study replicates 4 prior iterations of the program using the same 32‐hour curriculum facilitated by clinically trained staff, case managers, and onsite child care and family meals.MethodParticipants (N = 239) included low‐income (median = $24,000) coparenting pairs, typically mothers and fathers/father figures, half of whom were Mexican American, with toddlers (median age &lt; 3 years). Questionnaires assessing multiple family domains were administered verbally over an 18‐month period. Intervention effectiveness was tested through a randomized control trial with immediate treatment or waitlist–control groups using a moderated mediator structural equation model.ResultsThe model explained 49% to 56% of the variance in children's problem behaviors (intervention and autoregressive effects). The intervention reduced couple conflict, which reduced anxious and harsh parenting, leading to better child outcomes. The intervention was equally effective for community and child welfare–referred families and family dynamics pathways were similar across conditions.ConclusionWith its intentional outreach and inclusion of fathers, SFI offers an effective intervention for lower risk child welfare–involved families.ImplicationsResults argue for the utility of treating community and child welfare parents in mixed‐gender prevention groups that focus on strengthening multiple levels of family relationships.

Patient-centered substance use disorder treatment for women Veterans

Introduction: Substance use disorder (SUD) is damaging to women’s health and quality of life. Appropriate treatment can mitigate the effects and health consequences of SUD, yet many woman face access barriers to such treatment. This research seeks to bridge gaps in the current understanding of access to gender-aware care for women Veterans with SUD and to identify ideal treatment program elements for this population. Methods: We interviewed interdisciplinary providers in Los Angeles Veterans Health Administration facilities ( n = 17; psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, primary care providers, and nurses) and Veterans ( n = 6), identified using purposive snowball sampling, to characterize key components of a non-residential patient-centred SUD treatment program for women Veterans. A semi-structured interview guide elicited current SUD treatment options for women Veterans, barriers to SUD services, and ideal SUD treatment program components. Mutually agreed-on themes were reached using constant comparison. Results: Analyses revealed five key elements of an ideal SUD treatment program for women Veterans: safety (safe and free from harassment in treatment), flexible scheduling (able to accommodate other work and life responsibilities), resourced (no limit to number of visits, staff able to meet needs of comorbidities, on-site child care, etc.), informed providers (providers with access to a comprehensive resource list and aware of easy referral options), and positive (supportive and not punitive). Discussion: The elements identified as necessary for an optimal outpatient SUD treatment program may guide future implementation efforts. SUD programs may not be viable options for women Veterans if they cannot accommodate multidimensional barriers of health care access.

The Effects of Family-Friendly Policies and Workplace Social Support on Parenting Stress in Employed Mothers Working Nonstandard Hours

This study examines whether family-friendly policies (childcare leave, on-site childcare, and flexible working hours) and workplace social support (supervisor and coworker support) in South Korea are directly related to parenting stress among employed mothers with nonstandard work schedules. In addition, this study investigates the moderating role of family-supportive organization perceptions in the aforesaid associations. Data were collected from 223 employed mothers who have nonstandard work schedules with at least one or more children under the age of six. Results show that on-site childcare, flexible working hours, and supervisor support are negatively associated with parenting stress, whereas childcare leave is positively associated with parenting stress. Employed mothers with high family-supportive organization perceptions report low levels of parenting stress when they received high levels of supervisor support or did not take childcare leave. Additionally, employed mothers with low family-supportive organization perceptions report high levels of parenting stress when they did not use on-site childcare. Consequently, our findings indicate that employed mothers’ greater family-supportive organization perceptions are key factor reducing their parenting stress when they are limited to use family-friendly policies. Implications are discussed in terms of the importance of work-family intervention to the work-family balance among mothers working nonstandard hours.

Mother-Infant Psychotherapy Informed by Polyvagal Theory

ABSTRACTThis article illustrates the psychotherapeutic treatment of a 2-month-old male experiencing separation distress and problems in his regulatory system that were influencing the relationship with his mother. The baby was the product of a pregnancy complicated by maternal mental illness, homelessness, alcohol and drug exposure, lack of prenatal care, and a complicated delivery that required a 12-day hospital stay in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. The mother-infant psychotherapy was carried out over a two-year period and demonstrates the sensitive care needed when working with an overaroused and fearful baby and the critical ways that holding the mother in mind allows her in turn to hold her baby in mind. In this situation, the therapist provided an emotionally attuned interpersonal therapeutic relationship and created features of safety in the environment that helped develop new models of trust. We report here on an innovative program that provides health, mental health, onsite childcare, parenting education, and in-patient substance abuse services to mothers who are pregnant and/or parenting infants in the first three years of life. The specific purpose of the article is to discuss the mother-infant therapeutic treatment of a constitutionally challenged baby who was over aroused and fearful, and that we consider serves as an example for showing the favorable ways that holding the mother in mind free her to be emotionally available to the infant.

Psychopathology of Work-Family and Family-Work Conflicts among Dual Income Earners: An Empirical Analysis from Cosmopolitan Lagos

The study examined the psychopathological consequences of work-family and family-work conflict among dual income earner workers in Lagos metropolis. Employee’s perceptions as reflected in self reports constituted the central features of a model underlying the study, as they were believed to be related to the individual experience. A total sample comprising 626 dual-income earners employees comprises of 363 males and 263 females were drawn from human service private and public organization. Precisely, 348 of these workers were drawn from private sector and while 278 were drawn from public sector organizations respectively. The study was anchored on the Role-Strain Theory (Greenhaus & Beutell 1985) and Job-Demand-Control model (Karasek, 1979) .It was hypothesized that (i) there will be a significant relationship between family-work conflict, work-family conflict workers emotionality, psycho-physiological stress symptoms and affectivity among private and public sector worker in Lagos. Results of analyses conducted revealed that: (i) emotional exhaustion, emotional effort, physical and psychological stress symptoms had significant positive correlations with family-work and work-family conflict. (ii) positive affect had a negative significant correlations with family-to-work conflict and work-to-family conflict. (iii) reported psychopathological symptoms (i.e. emotionality, negative affect and psycho-physiological stress symptoms) were higher among private sector workers compared to public sector counterparts. Based on the findings recommendations were made one of which is that government sector as well as private organizations should make provision for flex time or on-site child care centres that would help to provide resources supporting family care or flexibility in the timing of work to enable women’s participation in both work and family roles. Implications for the research and the bidirectional influences of work and family are discussed.

European top managers’ support for work-life arrangements

In recent decades, work-life arrangements increasingly became an integral part of the organization of work. Arrangements such as telecommuting, flextime, part-time hours, and various types of leave arrangements are available to employees in many organizations. Top managers, such as CEOs, CFOs and members of boards of directors, are central to work-life arrangements, as they are the ones who decide whether or not their organization provides them. In addition, they are in the position to affect the acceptance of the use of work-life arrangements throughout the organization. Nevertheless, researchers have seldom included them directly in studies towards the provision of work-life arrangements. We therefore know little about why they decide to adopt or stimulate them in their organizations or refrain from doing so. This dissertation takes a first step to including the top managers’ perspective in the literature about work-life arrangements, aiming to understand top managers’ support for work-life arrangements in their organization. Based on a combination of qualitative and quantitative research methods, the studies presented reveal the factors that top managers consider when deciding whether or not to provide work-life arrangements and the conditions under which they are willing to support them in their own organizations. By focusing on various countries, specifically on Finland, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia and the U.K., differences in top managers’ considerations are related to the broader policy and societal context. Results show that top managers put the organization’s interests first and evaluate each policy separately against how they believe it will affect the organization. In general, they are most supportive of flextime and telecommuting, showing that this is where the current developments take place. They are least supportive of part-time working hours. However, their reluctance against part-time hours varies between countries and is related to the social acceptance of part-time work. When it is more accepted, top managers are more supportive. How willing top managers are to provide leave arrangements beyond what is statutory required and to provide on-site child care is related to government policies. In countries where the government provides extensive leave arrangements and public child care, top managers see leave arrangements and child care options as a government responsibility and therefor not theirs to provide. However, in these countries top managers do more often feel that it is their social responsibility to provide work-life arrangements. This shows that the degree to which top managers evaluate work-life arrangements in terms of a business case varies between countries. Finally, work-life arrangements seem to enjoy growing acceptance among top managers and are regarded as belonging to general terms of employment, suggesting that they are increasingly available to a larger part of the workers within an organization rather than the lucky few.