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Research Article
Open Access

Parenting Without Predictability: Precarious Schedules, Parental Strain, and Work-Life Conflict

Sigrid Luhr, Daniel Schneider, Kristen Harknett
RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences August 2022, 8 (5) 24-44; DOI: https://doi.org/10.7758/RSF.2022.8.5.02
Sigrid Luhr
aVisiting assistant professor of sociology at the University of Illinois at Chicago, United States
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Daniel Schneider
bProfessor of public policy at the Harvard Kennedy School and professor of sociology at Harvard University, United States
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Kristen Harknett
cProfessor of sociology at the University of California, San Francisco, United States
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Abstract

Against the backdrop of dramatic changes in work and family life, this article draws on survey data from 2,971 mothers working in the service sector to examine how unpredictable schedules are associated with three dimensions of parenting: difficulty arranging childcare, work-life conflict, and parenting stress. Results demonstrate that on-call shifts, shift timing changes, work hour volatility, and short advance notice of work schedules are positively associated with difficulty arranging childcare and work-life conflict. Mothers working these schedules are more likely to miss work. We consider how family structure and race moderate the relationship between schedule instability and these dimensions of parenting. Unstable work schedules, we argue, have important consequences for mothers working in the service industry.

  • childcare
  • low-wage work
  • parenting stress
  • work schedules
  • work-family conflict
  • © 2022 Russell Sage Foundation. Luhr, Sigrid, Daniel Schneider, and Kristen Harknett. “Parenting Without Predictability: Precarious Schedules, Parental Strain, and Work-Life Conflict.” RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences 8(5): 24–44. DOI: 10.7758/RSF.2022.8.5.02. We gratefully acknowledge grant support from the Russell Sage Foundation (Award No. 77–18–05), the W. T. Grant Foundation, the National Institutes of Child Health and Human Development (R21HD091578), the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (Award No. 74528), and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (Award No. 002665). Direct correspondence to: Sigrid Luhr, at sluhr2{at}uic.edu, 4112 Behavioral Sciences Bldg, 1007 W Harrison St, Chicago, IL 60607, United States.

Open Access Policy: RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences is an open access journal. This article is published under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

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RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences: 8 (5)
RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences
Vol. 8, Issue 5
1 Aug 2022
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Parenting Without Predictability: Precarious Schedules, Parental Strain, and Work-Life Conflict
Sigrid Luhr, Daniel Schneider, Kristen Harknett
RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences Aug 2022, 8 (5) 24-44; DOI: 10.7758/RSF.2022.8.5.02

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Parenting Without Predictability: Precarious Schedules, Parental Strain, and Work-Life Conflict
Sigrid Luhr, Daniel Schneider, Kristen Harknett
RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences Aug 2022, 8 (5) 24-44; DOI: 10.7758/RSF.2022.8.5.02
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  • Article
    • Abstract
    • UNPREDICTABLE AND PRECARIOUS WORK
    • DIFFICULTY ARRANGING CARE
    • WORK-LIFE CONFLICT
    • PARENTING STRESS
    • FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RACE/ETHNICITY
    • METHODS
    • RESULTS
    • HOW SCHEDULE INSTABILITY AFFECTS PARENTS
    • INSTABILITY SCALE AND PARENTING CHALLENGES
    • MODERATION OF SCHEDULE INSTABILITY AND PARENTING CHALLENGES
    • CONCLUSION
    • FOOTNOTES
    • REFERENCES
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Keywords

  • childcare
  • low-wage work
  • parenting stress
  • work schedules
  • work-family conflict

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