Evening and night work schedules and children’s social and emotional well-being

Till Kaiser, WZB Berlin Social Science Center
Jianghong Li, WZB Berlin Social Science Center
Matthias Pollmann-Schult, Social Science Research Center Berlin

An emerging body of evidence shows that parents’ nonstandard work schedules have a detrimental effect on children’s well-being. However, only a limited number of studies have investigated mediating factors that underpin this association. Likewise, only few studies have examined the impact of fathers’ nonstandard work schedules on children’s well-being. Based on data from the Families in Germany Study (FiD), this study aimed to address these research gaps. The findings show that both mothers’ and fathers’ evening and night work schedules are linked to an increase in children’s externalizing and internalizing behavior and that this association is partially mediated by harsh and strict parenting.