Differences between fathers and mothers in the view of family functioning, in life satisfaction and balance between work and family

Differences between fathers and mothers in the view of family functioning, in life satisfaction and balance between work and family I. Sobotkova, E. Reiterova, K. Hurnikova Objectives. The article starts from a larger research project "Work and family". The main aim of the presented research phase was to identify differences between fathers and mothers in the assessment of family functioning, in their life satisfaction, and managing work and family demands. Subjects and setting. The research group consists of 127 couples from different regions of the Czech Republic (254 respondents). Both parents are working, raising their children together and have no children from previous relationships. Two methods of family diagnostics were used (Family Environment Scale, Family Hardiness Index), two methods for mapping the interface between work and family (Work-family conflict and family-work conflict scale, Work-life balance scale), and the Life satisfaction questionnaire. Hypotheses. Hypotheses have not been formulated due to the exploratory nature of this research. Statistical analysis. Student's t-test and correlation analysis were used in the statistical processing of data. Results. The results showed significant differences between fathers and mothers in the subjective perception of family hardiness, in accepting challenges and activity, in managing work stress which affects the performance of parental roles, in the balance between work and family areas, and in satisfaction with their own personality. Further, some interesting diversities between men and women which emerged from the correlation analysis are pointed out. Finally, statistically significant differences within one sex by the number of children are listed and analyzed. Study limitation. Limitations of this study imply from the quantitative methodology, usage of self-report measures, and small representation of families with one child.