Maternal nonstandard work schedules and children’s social-emotional well-being: Evidence from the UK

Nonstandard work schedule (working in the evenings, nights, or weekends) of mothers has been linked to negative outcomes of children, yet few studies have examined the mechanisms underpinning such association. We use the UK-based Millennium Cohort Study (MCS) to analyze children’s socio-emotional development between ages three and seven and their association with mother’s work schedules, focusing on two main mechanisms: stability of children’s daily schedule and the types of daily activities children engage in. We found that mother’s NSWS is associated with increases in children’s socio-emotional problems, especially among those whose mother works at night. The quality of time spent with children mediates the effect of NSWS to a small degree and is less important than the stability of children’s routine.

 Dr. Chia Liu is a Research Fellow at the School of Geography & Sustainable Development at the University of St Andrews in Scotland. She is a quantitative family demographer who studies the social outcomes of immigrants, women, and children in a variety of settings.