Work and family transitions and the self-rated health of young women in South Africa

Work-family trajectories in young adulthood: Associations with mental health problems in adolescence

During young adulthood, several transitions in work and family lives occur, but knowledge of the work-family trajectories of the current generation of young adults, i.e. people born in the 1990s, is lacking. Moreover, little is known about whether the mental health status before the start of the working life may shape work-family trajectories. We used 18-year follow-up data from the TRAILS cohort study of individuals born between 1989 and 1991 (n = 992; 63.2% women). Internalising and externalising problems were measured with the Youth Self-Report at ages 11, 13 and 16 years. Monthly employment, education and parenthood states were recorded between 18 and 28 years. Applying sequence analysis, we identified six work-family trajectories in women and men. The first five trajectories were labelled: long education, continuous education and work, education and work to work, early work, and inactive. The main difference between trajectories of women and men was in the timing of parenthood, thus the remaining trajectory of women was labelled active with children, and the remaining trajectory of men active. Women who experienced externalising problems in adolescence were more likely to belong to the trajectory characterised by parenthood. Men who experienced internalising problems in adolescence were more likely to belong to the trajectory characterised by a long time spent in education. The TRAILS data allowed us to consider timing, duration and ordering of the work and family states in young adulthood, and to use multiple assessments of mental health in adolescence. Further research needs to examine the mechanisms through which early mental health affects later work and family outcomes.

Gendered work-family life courses and late-life physical functioning: A comparative analysis from 28 European countries

Combining work and family roles can have beneficial consequences on health but could also result in chronic stress and adverse health outcomes at older ages. This study aimed to examine combined employment, parenthood, and partnership histories of men and women during the childbearing period (ages 15-49), and to investigate the links of these work and family roles with physical functioning later in life. We used data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) with retrospective information on employment, parenthood, and partnership histories for 18,057 men and 20,072 women (n = 38,129) living in 28 different countries belonging to six European welfare clusters. We applied multichannel sequence analysis (MCSQA) and hierarchical clustering to group work-family trajectories into 12 clusters for men and 15 clusters for women. We assessed the association between work-family life courses and grip strength by estimating multivariable linear regression models. Delayed work and family transitions, unstable employment, and the absence of combinations of work and family roles between age 15 and 49 were associated with weaker grip strength in later life for both men and women. Results differed by gender and were framed by the welfare context in which gendered work and family responsibilities unfold across individual life courses. The findings make an important contribution to the domain of gender and health in later life and stress the need to engage more with issues related to the mechanisms linking work and family trajectories to poor health in later life.

Work-family trajectories and health: A systematic review

BACKGROUND

Work and family lives interact in complex ways across individuals' life courses. In the past decade, many studies constructed work-family trajectories, some also examined the relation with health. The aims of this systematic review were to summarise the evidence from studies constructing work-family trajectories, and to synthesise the evidence on the association between work-family trajectories and health.

METHODS

We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, SocINDEX and Web of Science databases. Key search terms related to work, family and trajectories. Studies that built combined work-family trajectories or examined the relationship between work and family trajectories were included. Risk of bias was assessed independently by two authors. The identified work-family trajectories were summarised and presented for men and women, age cohorts and contexts. The evidence on the association with health as antecedent or consequence was synthesised.

RESULTS

Forty-eight studies, based on 29 unique data sources, were included. Thirty-two studies (67%) were published in 2015 or later, and sequence analysis was the primary analytic technique used to construct the trajectories (n = 43, 90%). Trajectories of women were found to be more diverse and complex in comparison with men. Work-family trajectories differed by age cohorts and contexts. Twenty-three studies (48%) examined the association between work-family trajectories and health and most of these studies found significant associations. The results indicate that work-family trajectories characterised by an early transition to parenthood, single parenthood, and weak ties to employment are associated with worse health outcomes.

CONCLUSIONS

Work-family trajectories differed greatly between men and women, but differences seemed to decrease in the youngest cohorts. Given the current changes in labour markets and family formation processes, it is important to investigate the work and family lives of younger cohorts. Work-family trajectories were associated with health at different life stages. Future research should examine longitudinal associations of work-family trajectories with health and focus on elucidating why and under which circumstances some trajectories are associated with better or worse health compared with other trajectories.