Bringing home the benefits: Do pro-family employee benefits mitigate the risk of depression from competing workplace and domestic labor roles?

Jonathan M Platt; Lisa Bates; Justin Jager; Katie A McLaughlin; Katherine M Keyes

doi:10.1093/aje/kwae055

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Bringing home the benefits: Do pro-family employee benefits mitigate the risk of depression from competing workplace and domestic labor roles?

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Bringing home the benefits: Do pro-family employee benefits mitigate the risk of depression from competing workplace and domestic labor roles?

Jonathan M Platt, Lisa Bates, Justin Jager, Katie A McLaughlin and Katherine M Keyes

American journal of epidemiology, Vol.193(10), pp.1362-1371

10/07/2024

DOI: 10.1093/aje/kwae055

PMCID: PMC11458195

PMID: 38679465

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Abstract

Despite significant historical progress toward gender parity in employment status in the US, women remain more likely to provide domestic labor, creating role competition which may increase depression symptoms. Pro-family employee benefits may minimize the stress of competing roles. We tested whether depressive symptoms were higher among women with vs. without competing roles and whether this effect was greater among women without (vs. with) pro-family benefits. Data included employed women surveyed across 4 waves of the National Longitudinal Survey (2010-2019) (N=9884). Depression symptoms were measured with the Mental Health Inventory (MHI-5). The interaction between competing roles and pro-family employee benefits on depressive symptoms was also compared with non-family-related benefits, using marginal structural models to estimate longitudinal effects in the presence of time-varying confounding. MHI-5 scores were 0.56 points higher (95% CI=0.15, 0.97) among women in competing roles (vs. not). Among women without pro-family benefits, competing roles increased MHI-5 scores by 6.1-points (95% CI=1.14, 11.1). In contrast, there was no association between competing roles and MHI-5 scores among women with access to these benefits (MHI-5 difference=0.44; 95% CI=-0.2, 1.0). Results were similar for non-family-related benefits. Dual workplace and domestic labor role competition increases women's depression symptoms, though broad availability of workplace benefits may attenuate that risk.

Employee Benefits

competing roles

depression

gender

labor

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Details

Title: Subtitle: Bringing home the benefits: Do pro-family employee benefits mitigate the risk of depression from competing workplace and domestic labor roles?
Creators: Jonathan M Platt - University of Iowa
Lisa Bates - Columbia University
Justin Jager - Arizona State University
Katie A McLaughlin - Harvard University
Katherine M Keyes - Columbia University
Resource Type: Journal article
Publication Details: American journal of epidemiology, Vol.193(10), pp.1362-1371
DOI: 10.1093/aje/kwae055
PMID: 38679465
PMCID: PMC11458195
NLM abbreviation: Am J Epidemiol
ISSN: 0002-9262
eISSN: 1476-6256
Publisher: Oxford University Press; CARY
Grant note: National Institutes of Health: 5-T32-MH-13043-43, R01-AA026861, R01-MH103291, R01-MH106482, R56-119194
This work was supported by National Institutes of Health grants 5-T32-MH-13043-43 (J.M.P.), R01-AA026861 (K.M.K.), and R01-MH103291, R01-MH106482, and R56-119194 (K.A.M.).
Language: English
Electronic publication date: 04/26/2024
Date published: 10/07/2024
Academic Unit: Epidemiology; Injury Prevention Research Center
Record Identifier: 9984621359002771

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