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Whether to join a conference call or take the kids to school? For men who work from home, the decision is probably obvious. Work comes first and domestic commitments have to wait.
But a new study reveals that women find it harder to ignore the demands of family life.
The research, from Durham University Business School, explored “the experience of women and men working remotely, how they set boundaries and avoid work-life conflicts”.
Women were found to “appear to value being able to attend to their family’s needs by taking time off work,” while men were more likely to be bothered by distraction.
One male IT worker reported being asked by family members “can you fix this?” or “my internet isn’t working” by others, but complained: “They rarely knock on the door and ask if you want a cup of tea.” “Women were much more likely to value being there for their family, even during work time, while men were less likely to attend to their family’s needs if they conflicted with their work schedule,” the study found.
Flexibility: New study reveals women find it harder to ignore the demands of family life
The researchers cautioned that their findings “do not necessarily mean that remote working is a negative or inadvisable experience for women,” noting that it had been shown to be broadly positive for advancing women’s careers. They said: “The increased flexibility that working from home provides has empowered women to overcome much of the gender gap in the workplace.”
Researchers analyzed data from a project on the pandemic’s effect on work, which included in-depth interviews with 136 participants. The new study focused on 20 of those subjects.
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