OB essay

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Sociology

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May 24, 2024

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OB essay 1. Using relevant theories/frameworks in perceptions, stereotyping and attribution in Block 2 lectures, discuss the challenges that mothers/fathers may experience when they utilise parental leave; Despite the fact that firms in Australia are gradually implementing paid parental leave, there is growing concern about the stigma associated with it and the obstacles that both fathers and mothers face when they return to work. Research by the Australian Bureau of statistics (ABS) discovered that only one out of every twenty fathers takes primary parental leave, with mothers taking 95 percent of all primary parental leave (ABS 2017). Despite the low rate of fathers taking parental leave, males want to be active in their children's lives. Three out of every four fathers told the HRC that they would have preferred to take more time off (HRC 2014). One of the challenges impeding this is the stereotypes behind taking parental leave. The main component of stereotyping is assigning qualities to persons depending on their social status. This theory in the workplace portrays fathers as mother's helpers and places a premium on men's labour market commitments (Cannito, 2020). Although more mums are more likely to take use of maternal leave benefits over men, many women are hesitant to take the maximum amount of leave time due to fears of bad treatment, bias, and hostility from co-workers and supervisors when they return to work. Research by (Eagly, 1987; Eagly and Wood, 2012) shows that our behaviours, qualities, and opinions about others' behaviours and characteristics are all influenced by our social roles. Once again addressing the stereotyping theory, it is seen that women are viewed as more communal than males in general because they are more likely to have a domestic role and care for their children. Men on the other hand are viewed as more agentic since they are more likely to work outside the home and hold leadership roles (Eagly & Steffen, 1984, U.S. student and adult samples). Taking into account recent research demonstrating that mothers are more likely than fathers to leave their jobs, results also reveal that mothers struggle with the idea that they are being “pushed out” which leads to “opting out”. Mother’s attitudes and preferences are determined by how they understand their own conduct, according to self-perception theory. Gender differences in turnover intentions and intentions to return to the workforce are explained by changes in perceived career encouragement from organisational members (a pushed-out factor) and changes in the employees' own career motivation (an opting-out factor) throughout pregnancy. Through this perception theory it is seen that the idea that women's thoughts of being pushed out can cause them to leave their organisations. Research further proved that being female has an indirect link to higher turnover intentions and lower career motivation (E. E. Kossek, R. Su, and L. Wu, 2017). The process of establishing whether a behaviour is situationally (caused by external variables) or dispositionally (caused by internal factors) caused is often the subject of attribution theories (caused by internal characteristics). From the challenges seen from utilising parent leave it is proven that male parental leave is taken less than female parental leave. This is due to many different internal and external factors. In a study by Brescoll and Uhlmann, Participants had worse feelings for employed mothers and stay-at-home fathers than their traditional counterparts, thought the stay-at-home father was a worse parent,

and thought the employed mother was more selfish than the employed father ( Brescoll, V. L., & Uhlmann, E. L., 2005) . Through these perceptions and thoughts about the idea around parental leave, it reveals the external factors that may lead to many fathers not wanting to take parental leave. A fathers behaviour will reflect upon attributions, which in this case involves the external factors being that other employees in the work place will have negative thoughts about them taking parental leave. On the other hand, mothers will also be affected by these external factors as they do not want to look selfish and the norms around society reflect that mothers should be taking longer father leave than their husbands. There are mental and physical effects to not taking proper maternity leave, which can affect both the mother and the new infant. Allowing for paid maternity leave will aid in the reduction of physical and mental stress that might occur during pregnancy. These factors can be considered internal which may reflect a mothers behaviour on taking parent leave, as they will wish for a longer parent leave to reduce the outcome of them becoming depressed due to little parental leave. The factors challenging this decision are that many women are still hesitant to take extended parental leave because they are concerned about workplace bias and discrimination. 2. Flexible work arrangements are critical for removing stressors and retaining the modern workforce, particularly for working parents. Explain the notion of flexible work arrangements and how they may enhance job satisfaction and organisational commitment of working mothers and fathers. To various people, flexible working arrangements can mean different things. Flexibility in one's work schedule is largely dependent on the person and stage of life they are in. Flexible work arrangements are deviations from the standard working day and week pattern. Employees can work a modified schedule to accommodate personal or family obligations. Flexible work arrangements are essential for reducing stress and maintaining today's workforce. Employees' morale can be boosted and their physical and mental health can be improved by allowing them to work from home or take time off work to be a parent. Flexible work arrangements allow employees to be less fatigued and more rested, which reduces the risk of weariness, burnout, and stress. Parental leave may have long-term health implications for mothers by preventing or lowering stressors associated with childbirth. Depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, anxiety, and postpartum psychosis are among the psychiatric diseases that new mums are more likely to develop. By having flexible work arrangements for these new mothers will help relieve their stress. Flexible schedules not only benefit individuals by increasing job satisfaction, improving health, improving work-life balance, and reducing stress, but they also benefit companies by increasing productivity, lowering turnover, and lowering absenteeism during the process of maternity leave. There has been an increasing interest in the influence of family-friendly programming availability throughout the last several decades ( Wang, Lawler, J. J., & Shi, K., 2011) . Many companies are increasingly providing benefits to help employees balance family and work obligations. Although there are a number of reasons for this, one of the most important is the belief that providing family-friendly programmes will reduce work–family conflict and lead to beneficial outcomes such as higher job satisfaction, organisational commitment, and individual and firm performance. Paid parental leave has been linked to increased job satisfaction, as well as increased employee productivity and loyalty. Paid parental leave

benefits businesses through increasing the number of workers who return to work after taking parental leave whilst also lowering the expenses of recruitment and training. If mothers and fathers are given benefits through taking parental leave they are more motivated to come back to work. By having a supportive environment within their organisation it prevents unmotivated employees. Organizations with robust parental leave policies are more likely to attract and retain employees. These rules provide the message that the company values employees with families and promotes gender equity. Flexible and generous parental leave policies provide the greatest benefits to individuals, organisations, and society. Flexible working patterns have the ability to increase employee morale, contentment, and retention. Businesses save tens of thousands of dollars in employee turnover, and people are better able to balance work and personal obligations. Fathers and mothers seek to juggle multiple demands of parenthood, whilst also having a successful career. By receiving flexible work arrangements it provides these parents with beneficial ways to seek this dream. If mothers and fathers are aware that flexible working arrangements are present within their workplace its helps reduce the presence of stress. Managing work related stress involves minimising or resolving stress. A strategy of this is by receiving flexible work arrangements. Withdrawing from this stressor is seen by parents taking time off work to spend time with their children. If parents are not bothered by the fact that they have to miss out on spending time with their children, they will be less eager to quit their job. If mothers and fathers are not being supported by their firm it can lead to negative effects in the modern workforce. Many employees embrace flexible working arrangements as a crucial component of their efforts to create a better work-life balance. Since the modern era, this has been a hot topic of debate, and it is considered as a promising strategy for improving human working conditions ( Courtney White, & Balasundram Maniam, 2020). Additionally, added health benefits, more time at home and with family, and more time to enjoy life's pleasures are only some of the elements that have contributed to the topic. While there are many various ways to obtain more flexibility and a work-life balance for mothers and fathers, many people do so for the sake of happiness and overall well-being. Job crafting is an important theory to consider in the process of improving work life balance. Job crafting consists of changing components of one's profession to match one's own wants, needs, and abilities. If mothers and fathers are obtaining happiness and a good well-being through job crafting there is a high chance that their stressors will be minimized. Reference list

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ABS. (2017). One in 20 dads takes primary parental leave. Gender Indicators, Australia, September 2017 Retrieved from https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/by %20Subject/4125.0~Sep%202017~Media%20Release~One%20in%2020%20dads%20take %20primary%20parental%20leave%20(Media%20Release)~11 Australian Human Rights Commission. (2014). Supporting Working Parents: Pregnancy and Return to Work National Review – Report . Sydney: Australian Human Rights Commission Cannito. (2020). The influence of partners on fathers’ decision-making about parental leave in Italy: Rethinking maternal gatekeeping. Current Sociology , 68 (6), 832–849. https://doi.org/10.1177/0011392120902231 Eagly, A. H., & Wood, W. (2012). Social role theory. In P. A. M. Van Lange, A. W. Kruglanski, & E. T. Higgins (Eds.), Handbook of theories of social psychology (pp. 458–476). Sage Publications Ltd. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781446249222.n49 Eagly, A. H., & Mladinic, A. (1994). Are People Prejudiced Against Women? Some Answers From Research on Attitudes, Gender Stereotypes, and Judgments of Competence. European Review of Social Psychology , 5 (1), 1–35. https://doi.org/10.1080/14792779543000002 Kossek, E. E., Su, R., & Wu, L. (2017). “Opting out” or “pushed out”? Integrating perspectives on women’s career equality for gender inclusion and interventions. Journal of Management, 43 (1), 228-254. Brescoll, V. L., & Uhlmann, E. L. (2005). Attitudes Toward Traditional and Nontraditional Parents. Psychology of Women Quarterly , 29 (4), 436–445. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-6402.2005.00244.x Wang, Lawler, J. J., & Shi, K. (2011). Implementing family-friendly employment practices in banking industry: Evidences from some African and Asian countries. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology , 84 (3), 493–517. https://doi.org/10.1348/096317910X525363 Courtney White, & Balasundram Maniam. (2020). FLEXIBLE WORKING ARRANGEMENTS, WORKLIFE BALANCE, AND WORKING WOMEN. Journal of Business and Accounting , 13 (1), 59–73.

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