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Double Jeopardy: The Roles of Job Autonomy and Spousal Gender Ideology in Employed Women’s Mental Health

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  • Senhu Wang

    (National University of Singapore)

  • Lambert Zixin Li

    (Stanford University)

Abstract

Employed women persistently suffer in mental health despite more family-friendly workplaces. The job demand-control theory argues that employed women’s mental health depends on their job autonomy, while sociological research on the gender division of household labor locates the cause in how much they are expected by husbands to contribute to housework. The article integrates the two streams of literature by arguing that employed women’s job autonomy and their spousal gender ideology interact to shape their mental health. Using nationally representative household-level panel survey and fixed effects models, the study showed that job autonomy improved employed women’s mental health, but the benefits depended on their spousal gender ideologies. Specifically, women suffered a “double jeopardy” in mental health when they lacked job autonomy and had traditional husbands. In contrast, when women’s husbands had an egalitarian gender ideology, they enjoyed mental health regardless of job autonomy. In addition, women’s self-gender ideology did not predict their own or their husbands’ mental health. The results point to a societal-level change in men’s gender ideology as a fundamental way to improve employed women’s family well-being.

Suggested Citation

  • Senhu Wang & Lambert Zixin Li, 2023. "Double Jeopardy: The Roles of Job Autonomy and Spousal Gender Ideology in Employed Women’s Mental Health," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 18(1), pages 473-490, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:ariqol:v:18:y:2023:i:1:d:10.1007_s11482-022-10090-8
    DOI: 10.1007/s11482-022-10090-8
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Senhu Wang & Adam Coutts & Brendan Burchell & Daiga KamerÄ de & Ursula Balderson, 2021. "Can Active Labour Market Programmes Emulate the Mental Health Benefits of Regular Paid Employment? Longitudinal Evidence from the United Kingdom," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 35(3), pages 545-565, June.
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    3. Senhu Wang & Lambert Zixin Li & Zhuofei Lu & Shuanglong Li & David Rehkopf, 2022. "Work Schedule Control and Allostatic Load Biomarkers: Disparities Between and Within Gender," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 163(3), pages 1249-1267, October.
    4. Joel Goh & Jeffrey Pfeffer & Stefanos A. Zenios, 2016. "The Relationship Between Workplace Stressors and Mortality and Health Costs in the United States," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 62(2), pages 608-628, February.
    5. Kamerāde, Daiga & Wang, Senhu & Burchell, Brendan & Balderson, Sarah Ursula & Coutts, Adam, 2019. "A shorter working week for everyone: How much paid work is needed for mental health and well-being?," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 241(C).
    6. Deniz Yucel, 2019. "Job Autonomy and Schedule Flexibility as Moderators of the Relationship Between Work-Family Conflict and Work-Related Outcomes," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 14(5), pages 1393-1410, November.
    7. Deniz Yucel & Krista Lynn Minnotte, 2017. "Workplace Support and Life Satisfaction: the Mediating Roles of Work-to-Family Conflict and Mental Health," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 12(3), pages 549-575, September.
    8. Anne McMunn & Lauren Bird & Elizabeth Webb & Amanda Sacker, 2020. "Gender Divisions of Paid and Unpaid Work in Contemporary UK Couples," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 34(2), pages 155-173, April.
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