MARRIAGE AND THE WORK-FAMILY DELIMMA: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF WORK-FAMILY CONFLICT AMONG MARRIED AND UNMARRIED WOMEN IN INFORMAL SECTOR

ABSTRACT:

This study investigates how marital status affects work-family conflict experiences among female dressmakers and hairdressers in Konongo-Odumasi, Ghana. Employing Descriptive Survey Designs in the constraints of a positivistic quantitative research paradigm, the study surveyed 200 self-employed women comprising 100 married and 100 unmarried, selected by a multi-stage random sampling method from 5 locality clusters. Data were collected using structured questionnaires and had high reliability (Cronbach's Alpha=0.802), which indicates a strong internal consistency. Married women reported much higher work-family conflict (M= 3.94, SD= 0.58) than women who were not married (M= 3.21, SD= 0.73). This difference was statistically important (t = 4.55, p < .001). Married women (mean = 3.94, SD = 0.58) experienced significantly higher WFC than unmarried women (mean = 3.21, SD = 0.73), with t (198) = 4.55, p < .001. The study reveals that all participants of the survey reported WFC-related balancing work-family roles; however, married women were the most impacted due to traditional gendered social expectations and marriage, which did not support work-family balance but instead presented negative pressure on the married women as workers, wives, and mothers.

Keywords: Work-family conflict, informal sector, marriage, gender roles, dressmakers, Ghana