Irregular working hours bad for kids.

For the millions of people who work “nonstandard” shifts—evenings, nights or with rotating days off—the schedule can be especially challenging with children at home.   But a new study finds that consistent hours, at whatever time of day, can give families flexibility and in some cases, improve children’s behavior.   

What the researchers say: The study, published in the June issue of the Journal of Family Issues, focuses on two-parent families in which one parent works a nonstandard shift. The study finds that the impacts of parent work schedules on children vary by age and gender, and often reflect which shift a parent works. 

Rotating shifts—a schedule that varies day by day or week by week—can be most problematic for children.   “Workers often struggle to carve out the work/life balance they want for themselves, and in dual-earner families, balancing partners’ schedules remains an issue for many families,” said the lead author.   Many factors may disrupt what used to be called normal working hours: rapidly changing technology affecting many industries, the increase in working remotely, and the growing gig economy. Nonstandard schedules, especially for single-parent and lower-income families, are associated with behavior problems among children, according to past research (see previous TRs).  

Using information from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, which started following a group of nearly 13,000 individuals in 1979, and its Child Supplement, which started following the children of those individuals in 1986, the researchers analyzed parents’ work schedules against their periodic reports of their children’s behavior. Child behavior (covering ages 5 to 15) was ascertained from a 28-question survey that covers issues such as anxiety, aggression and getting along with peers.   Among the team’s findings:  

• A mother’s night shift tended to have benefits for boys and girls, especially when they’re young
• A mother’s rotating shift, or a split shift – say, going to work for a few hours in the morning, and again in the evening – was associated with greater problems among boys of all ages, and among older girls
• A father’s rotating or split shift was associated with more behavior problems among girls, particularly younger girls
• A father’s night shift tended to coincide with behavioral benefits among boys

  What’s less clear is why.   The gender differences may relate to parent involvement. Some research finds that fathers tend to be more involved in their sons’ lives, perhaps explaining why fathers’ shift schedules are more likely to be associated with benefits for boys. Other research on the impact of shift work on adults’ physical and emotional stamina, (see past TRs) suggests that parents who work nonstandard schedules may be under more stress and have less energy, or “psychological capital” to meet their child’s needs. Unstable shift schedules, like rotating shifts, could be especially stressful for parents. This stress may have important repercussions for children, as children learn to model their parents’ behavior.   

So, what? A ton of research has shown that children do better with fixed schedules—they need certainty and the knowledge that a parent will be there at a certain time and that there’ll be time for them. This is particularly true for the under-6s (see our book “Raising an Optimistic Child” in our store).   

What now? Isn’t it about time we organized work for humans rather than try to organize humans for work? Shouldn’t our aim be to make the most of our design-specs rather than try and make us into something we’re not? Working with human design-specs will not lower productivity, but it will reduce stress, increase engagement and job satisfaction.