A new study suggests fathers may have an easier time requesting work-life balance than mothers.
The finding is an exasperating twist in the debate about how to best support women who want both a flourishing career and family.
For years, advocates have argued that flexible workplace policies could reduce gender inequality both on the job and at home. But the new research, which is being presented Monday at an American Sociological Association conference, shows that deeply ingrained attitudes about motherhood may work against women hoping to balance a career and children.
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The study, a survey of 660 adults across the U.S., found that women who asked to telecommute two days per week were seen as less committed, less respected and even less likable compared to male colleagues who made the same request. The margins by which respondents viewed women less favorably were not minor, either.
In the study, participants evaluated a scenario in which an employee asked for flextime or to telecommute for different reasons. Of those who reviewed both a man and woman's request to telecommute in order to tend to tasks like picking a child up from a bus stop or daycare, 70% said they would be likely to grant the man's request while only 57% would say yes to the woman.
[img src="http://admin.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Telecommuting1.jpg" caption="" credit="" alt="Telecommuting"]
Gender also seemed to influence how respondents viewed the workers. Nearly a quarter judged the father to be "extremely likable," but only 3% rated the mothers similarly. Finally, 15.5% of the participants found the female employee to be "not at all" or "not very" committed to her job, while only 3% made the same judgment of the male employee.
Christin Munsch, an assistant professor of sociology at Furman University who conducted the research, told Mashable the results point to a "fatherhood bonus" for men who assume less traditional childcare responsibilities.
Munsch said that despite the many gains women have made in the workforce over the past few decades, men are still commonly the breadwinners, and are thus faced with fewer expectations to do the kind of intensive childrearing associated with motherhood. "If they happen to help out," she said, "then we think, 'Well, what a great guy.'"
In the workplace, this may help men earn a kind of "progressive merit badge," or recognition that they're testing the boundaries of masculinity. Munsch said the higher favorability ratings for men in her study are likely due to expectations that they'll continue to provide financial security to their families and find time to complete work.
Women, on the other hand, are disadvantaged by the perception that their role at home is to provide time-consuming childcare. Colleagues and supervisors may think a mother can't possibly telecommute and remain a productive employee.
There is a sliver of good news, though. When participants compared requests for flextime, or working at the office on an adapted schedule, they didn't penalize mothers in comparison to fathers -- both were viewed at the same level of favorability. Munsch said this may indicate a cultural fixation with gauging productivity by the hours a worker spends at his or her desk.
Munsch, who supports flexible work practices, said the study reveals how enlightened and well-meaning policies can conflict with long-held beliefs about gender and childrearing.
"There’s been this emancipation of women’s roles, but there’s not been a counter-movement for what is acceptable for men and masculinity," she said. Until that happens, mothers may find themselves judged harshly in comparison to their male colleagues.
"We may think [flexible work] is good for gender inequality," she said, "but it might actually perpetuate gender inequality."
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