The Reshaping of Daily Time during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Lone Parent’s Work-Family Articulation in a Low-Intensity Lockdown
The COVID-19 pandemic and related restrictions have triggered simultaneous changes across multiple life domains within a very short timeframe. This major shock has seriously challenged the ability of families to adapt to unanticipated changes over which they had little control. Switzerland instigate...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2021-06-01
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| Series: | Social Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/10/7/239 |
| _version_ | 1797529079379918848 |
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| author | Núria Sánchez-Mira Laura Bernardi Benjamin Moles-Kalt Cléolia Sabot |
| author_facet | Núria Sánchez-Mira Laura Bernardi Benjamin Moles-Kalt Cléolia Sabot |
| author_sort | Núria Sánchez-Mira |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The COVID-19 pandemic and related restrictions have triggered simultaneous changes across multiple life domains within a very short timeframe. This major shock has seriously challenged the ability of families to adapt to unanticipated changes over which they had little control. Switzerland instigated a low-intensity lockdown in response to COVID-19 in the spring of 2020. The resulting alterations to family life included changes to employment situations and working conditions (such as layoffs, temporary unemployment and home-based work) and the need to arrange home-schooling and childcare. This study examines how a sample of individuals with a trajectory of lone parenthood living in French-speaking Switzerland adapted their everyday lives to accommodate the shifting demands in the domains of employment and family responsibilities. Interviews were conducted between April and June 2020 for the longitudinal project “The multiple paths of lone parenthood”. Using this data, we analysed the COVID-related changes to work and family life, focusing on their time structuring. We found that parents who remained employed faced the greatest time pressures, although their experiences varied significantly depending on the adaptability of their work schedules, as well as the child(ren)’s age(s) and degree of autonomy. Home-based work and home-schooling resulted in more flexible schedules, although parents with the greatest work and family demands sought more time-structured organisation to facilitate their articulation. Social support was a crucial buffer for parents with conflicting demands across domains. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T10:08:19Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-39cc013820274704941916214365ddeb |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-0760 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T10:08:19Z |
| publishDate | 2021-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Social Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-39cc013820274704941916214365ddeb2023-11-22T01:19:59ZengMDPI AGSocial Sciences2076-07602021-06-0110723910.3390/socsci10070239The Reshaping of Daily Time during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Lone Parent’s Work-Family Articulation in a Low-Intensity LockdownNúria Sánchez-Mira0Laura Bernardi1Benjamin Moles-Kalt2Cléolia Sabot3Institute of Social Sciences and NCCR LIVES, University of Lausanne, CH-1015 Lausanne, SwitzerlandInstitute of Social Sciences and NCCR LIVES, University of Lausanne, CH-1015 Lausanne, SwitzerlandInstitute of Social Sciences and NCCR LIVES, University of Lausanne, CH-1015 Lausanne, SwitzerlandInstitute of Social Sciences and NCCR LIVES, University of Lausanne, CH-1015 Lausanne, SwitzerlandThe COVID-19 pandemic and related restrictions have triggered simultaneous changes across multiple life domains within a very short timeframe. This major shock has seriously challenged the ability of families to adapt to unanticipated changes over which they had little control. Switzerland instigated a low-intensity lockdown in response to COVID-19 in the spring of 2020. The resulting alterations to family life included changes to employment situations and working conditions (such as layoffs, temporary unemployment and home-based work) and the need to arrange home-schooling and childcare. This study examines how a sample of individuals with a trajectory of lone parenthood living in French-speaking Switzerland adapted their everyday lives to accommodate the shifting demands in the domains of employment and family responsibilities. Interviews were conducted between April and June 2020 for the longitudinal project “The multiple paths of lone parenthood”. Using this data, we analysed the COVID-related changes to work and family life, focusing on their time structuring. We found that parents who remained employed faced the greatest time pressures, although their experiences varied significantly depending on the adaptability of their work schedules, as well as the child(ren)’s age(s) and degree of autonomy. Home-based work and home-schooling resulted in more flexible schedules, although parents with the greatest work and family demands sought more time-structured organisation to facilitate their articulation. Social support was a crucial buffer for parents with conflicting demands across domains.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/10/7/239COVID-19lockdowneveryday timelife domainswork-family articulationlone parenthood |
| spellingShingle | Núria Sánchez-Mira Laura Bernardi Benjamin Moles-Kalt Cléolia Sabot The Reshaping of Daily Time during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Lone Parent’s Work-Family Articulation in a Low-Intensity Lockdown Social Sciences COVID-19 lockdown everyday time life domains work-family articulation lone parenthood |
| title | The Reshaping of Daily Time during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Lone Parent’s Work-Family Articulation in a Low-Intensity Lockdown |
| title_full | The Reshaping of Daily Time during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Lone Parent’s Work-Family Articulation in a Low-Intensity Lockdown |
| title_fullStr | The Reshaping of Daily Time during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Lone Parent’s Work-Family Articulation in a Low-Intensity Lockdown |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Reshaping of Daily Time during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Lone Parent’s Work-Family Articulation in a Low-Intensity Lockdown |
| title_short | The Reshaping of Daily Time during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Lone Parent’s Work-Family Articulation in a Low-Intensity Lockdown |
| title_sort | reshaping of daily time during the covid 19 pandemic lone parent s work family articulation in a low intensity lockdown |
| topic | COVID-19 lockdown everyday time life domains work-family articulation lone parenthood |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/10/7/239 |
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