The Mental Health Consequences of Work-Life and Life-Work Conflicts for STEM Postdoctoral Trainees
Research has shown that work-life conflicts exist among all kinds of workers, including academics, and these conflicts are a key contributor to workers’ reports of poor well-being. Very little research has been done on work-life conflict among post-baccalaureate PhD trainees (e.g., graduate students...
| Main Authors: | , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Frontiers Media S.A.
2021-11-01
|
| Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.750490/full |
| _version_ | 1818834751562186752 |
|---|---|
| author | Richard N. Pitt Yasemin Taskin Alp Imani A. Shell |
| author_facet | Richard N. Pitt Yasemin Taskin Alp Imani A. Shell |
| author_sort | Richard N. Pitt |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Research has shown that work-life conflicts exist among all kinds of workers, including academics, and these conflicts are a key contributor to workers’ reports of poor well-being. Very little research has been done on work-life conflict among post-baccalaureate PhD trainees (e.g., graduate students and postdoctoral trainees) who reside in an important liminal stage in the professoriate pipeline. In this study, we examine the degree to which postdocs believe they suffer from conflicts between their work responsibilities and their home responsibility and the relationship between those conflicts and postdoc’s mental health. We argue that, like other workers, postdocs suffer (in numerical terms and its relationship to health) more from the work-to-life imbalances than from life-to-work imbalances; life matters more than work, ultimately. Our results, based on a survey of 215 STEM postdoctoral trainees, reveal that a majority of postdocs say they have work-life conflicts and these work-life conflicts are associated with negative mental health outcomes. We discuss the potential impact of these findings on attempts to broaden participation in STEM careers and diversify the professoriate. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-19T02:39:48Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-f3d809484b324d7898089eda78daa0c0 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-1078 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-19T02:39:48Z |
| publishDate | 2021-11-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-f3d809484b324d7898089eda78daa0c02022-12-21T20:39:10ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782021-11-011210.3389/fpsyg.2021.750490750490The Mental Health Consequences of Work-Life and Life-Work Conflicts for STEM Postdoctoral TraineesRichard N. PittYasemin Taskin AlpImani A. ShellResearch has shown that work-life conflicts exist among all kinds of workers, including academics, and these conflicts are a key contributor to workers’ reports of poor well-being. Very little research has been done on work-life conflict among post-baccalaureate PhD trainees (e.g., graduate students and postdoctoral trainees) who reside in an important liminal stage in the professoriate pipeline. In this study, we examine the degree to which postdocs believe they suffer from conflicts between their work responsibilities and their home responsibility and the relationship between those conflicts and postdoc’s mental health. We argue that, like other workers, postdocs suffer (in numerical terms and its relationship to health) more from the work-to-life imbalances than from life-to-work imbalances; life matters more than work, ultimately. Our results, based on a survey of 215 STEM postdoctoral trainees, reveal that a majority of postdocs say they have work-life conflicts and these work-life conflicts are associated with negative mental health outcomes. We discuss the potential impact of these findings on attempts to broaden participation in STEM careers and diversify the professoriate.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.750490/fullwork-life imbalancespostdoctoral traineesacademic workersmental healthanxietyattrition |
| spellingShingle | Richard N. Pitt Yasemin Taskin Alp Imani A. Shell The Mental Health Consequences of Work-Life and Life-Work Conflicts for STEM Postdoctoral Trainees Frontiers in Psychology work-life imbalances postdoctoral trainees academic workers mental health anxiety attrition |
| title | The Mental Health Consequences of Work-Life and Life-Work Conflicts for STEM Postdoctoral Trainees |
| title_full | The Mental Health Consequences of Work-Life and Life-Work Conflicts for STEM Postdoctoral Trainees |
| title_fullStr | The Mental Health Consequences of Work-Life and Life-Work Conflicts for STEM Postdoctoral Trainees |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Mental Health Consequences of Work-Life and Life-Work Conflicts for STEM Postdoctoral Trainees |
| title_short | The Mental Health Consequences of Work-Life and Life-Work Conflicts for STEM Postdoctoral Trainees |
| title_sort | mental health consequences of work life and life work conflicts for stem postdoctoral trainees |
| topic | work-life imbalances postdoctoral trainees academic workers mental health anxiety attrition |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.750490/full |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT richardnpitt thementalhealthconsequencesofworklifeandlifeworkconflictsforstempostdoctoraltrainees AT yasemintaskinalp thementalhealthconsequencesofworklifeandlifeworkconflictsforstempostdoctoraltrainees AT imaniashell thementalhealthconsequencesofworklifeandlifeworkconflictsforstempostdoctoraltrainees AT richardnpitt mentalhealthconsequencesofworklifeandlifeworkconflictsforstempostdoctoraltrainees AT yasemintaskinalp mentalhealthconsequencesofworklifeandlifeworkconflictsforstempostdoctoraltrainees AT imaniashell mentalhealthconsequencesofworklifeandlifeworkconflictsforstempostdoctoraltrainees |