Work-Life Balance in Higher Education for Women: Perspectives of Athletic Training Faculty

Work-Life Balance a Women's Issue

Some have assumed that work-life balance is a gendered issue,¹¹ one that focuses only on women, yet research^12,13 reveals that men and women value balance and strive to achieve satisfaction from their families, work, and personal interests. In higher education, however, the pursuit of work-life balance appears to be a gendered issue. Some scholars have suggested that women intentionally pursue careers or jobs that are viewed as less challenging, so as to balance it all—that is, to be successful as a career woman and a mother.^14,15 Hakim¹⁶ suggests that this is an adaptive lifestyle preference, whereby engaging in paid work is important but valued proportionately to engaging in domestic, household, and personal/family obligations. The ideology that women select less demanding jobs as a means to create balance speaks to the sociocultural impact on career choice, and for women faculty^14,15 and women athletic trainers^17–20 this has been investigated and found to be somewhat true.

In several studies examining work-life balance, female faculty members have been found to make choices that accommodate their families, reduce working hours to address nonwork obligations, and sacrifice work success to balance other roles.²¹ The AAUP shares that most PhDs earn their degrees at the age of 33, with tenure occurring around 40, a period of time that coincides with childbearing and child-rearing. Some^6,21,22 speculate this creates a situation in which a woman must make a choice regarding career and family goals, a choice not often forced upon male faculty.

A few studies^9,23 have suggested that women faculty identify large workloads and long work hours as impediments to finding balance. Moreover, women with caring responsibilities (ie, parenting or elder care) struggle to create balance and maintain distinctions between work schedules and deadlines and domestic and family needs.^23–25 Often there is a misperception that because of the flexible nature of higher education in regards to teaching and research obligations, work-life balance is easier or more obtainable.⁹ This is remarkably untrue; women continue to struggle to get tenure, and when this is coupled with balancing motherhood the obstacles can become greater.²⁶ The culture of long hours that often accompanies academic positions, when coupled with managing family obligations and commitments, can make it difficult for women to create balance. Organizational barriers are apparent, but it is important to acknowledge that barriers to work-life balance can extend beyond workplace culture and the nature of the job and to personal preferences¹⁶ and sociocultural norms that speak to traditional gender ideologies and expectations for women to remain the domestic and household leaders.^27,28

The link between sex and work-life imbalance stems from the ideologies that exist that suggest women assume the burden of domestic responsibilities; that is, despite outside roles (ie, working), they also need to address the day-to-day functioning of the household, independent of more traditional roles of parenting. Gender roles are founded on norms and standards that have been created by society, and despite advances in thinking women often continue to be viewed as those who should be focused on child care, parenting, and housekeeping.²⁹ Evolution of these roles has more women engaging in paid work and men participating in housework; however, women often still experience guilt and shoulder a larger portion of these duties, leading to conflict and imbalance.^9,25 The conflict manifests because of what is referred to as the second shift, where during the day women do their paid jobs and at night do household chores and caregiving.³⁰ Women in general have been said to struggle in higher education, and in many cases it's because of their attempts to sustain success in both roles.

Management of Work and Life

Flexible work arrangements have emerged as the driving initiative behind the pursuit of work-life balance. The types of flexible work arrangements may vary, but the premise is still the same: control over when and where the work is completed.³¹ For the athletic trainer, control over work scheduling is limited, especially in the college and university settings; yet for a faculty member a benefit to the employment setting is flexibility and the freedom to decide when and where work will be completed.^32,33 Academic freedom has several meanings and implications, but at the core it simply allows faculty members the chance to freely navigate their responsibilities within their job descriptions.³⁴ Such freedom can allow for a more balanced lifestyle, in theory, as the faculty member can allocate the necessary time, energy, and resources as needed to meet those obligations regularly. The academic freedom offered within higher education, as discussed here, speaks to the autonomy to do one's work where and when it is best for the faculty member. For practicing athletic trainers, long work hours and little freedom to decide how and when work is completed create a greater potential for conflict with time to engage in leisure and family activities.^17,35–39 Despite a clear understanding of the work-life and work-family interface in athletic training and higher education, little is understood about the two among athletic training faculty members, particularly female faculty members.

The debate continues on whether female faculty members are able to be successful navigating the rigors of higher education as well as role balancing among their work and nonwork interests and responsibilities. This is regardless of the academic discipline, but there has been some speculation that health care faculty, such as those in nursing and athletic training, may face challenges. Nursing faculty are able to find greater work-life balance when tenure has been earned, children are older, and patient care is limited.⁴⁰ This finding suggests that not yet having earned tenure and having young children can make finding work-life balance a challenge. The guiding purpose of our study, therefore, was to examine the experiences of female athletic trainers who are currently employed as faculty members in a higher education institution. Our study was guided by the following research questions:

1. What are the perceptions of women athletic trainers who have chosen a career in higher education regarding their ability to find and maintain work-life balance?

2. What are the perceptions of women athletic trainers who have chosen a career in higher education regarding motherhood and successfully navigating both roles?

3. What are the specific challenges to finding work-life balance as well as those strategies used to find work-life balance for women faculty in athletic training?

Research Design

We used a phenomenological approach⁴¹ to investigate the experiences of women athletic trainers who are faculty members in higher education. Phenomenology allowed us to focus on the lived experiences as well as the perceptions of our participants as they navigated role balancing within their roles in higher education as well as at home. One-on-one interviews were purposefully selected, as we wanted the chance to become immersed in our participants' experiences and to gain rich descriptions of their experiences within higher education as it pertained to role balancing.

Participants

After securing institutional review board approval, we used convenience and snowball sampling procedures⁴¹ for recruitment. We relied on professional networks to identify our initial convenience sample, and then used snowball sampling with recruited participants to connect with others meeting the same inclusion criteria. The inclusion criteria were female specific and employment in a full-time faculty position with a minimum of 1 full year of experience and without a dual role as clinician. We purposefully recruited faculty members with (n = 8) and without (n = 8) children, as we sought to gain an appreciation for the role of a faculty member with and without the influence of parenting. Sixteen individuals consented to speak about their experiences as female faculty members. Saturation was satisfied with our initial sample.

Of our 16 faculty members, 10 were married at the time of the interview, 3 were single, 2 were engaged, and 1 was in the process of getting a divorce. The average age of our participants was 35 ± 6.2 years (range, 28–49 years; 2 did not report ages), and they had an average of 14 ± 5.9 years of experience (range, 7–25 years) as certified athletic trainers and an average of 11 years of experience teaching within an athletic training program. Participants were assigned pseudonyms to maintain their confidentiality. The Table provides individual faculty member data.

Table.  Participant Demographic Information

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Data Collection Procedures

Using the literature and research agenda, we designed the interview framework (Appendix) to gain a holistic impression of our participants' experiences as well as to gain an appreciation for the influence outside-work roles (ie, roles in marriage and family) can have on experiences as a faculty member. To certify the information collected and truly capture the phenomenon of interest, we had an expert in the socialization framework review the content and structure of the interview guide. The expert was a female faculty member meeting our criteria for inclusion and assisted in the study's development and analyses. Finally, we piloted the study with 2 female athletic trainers (1 married with children, 1 married without children). We used the pilot as a final step in establishing the interview framework and as a means to establish content of the framework. Blending multiple aspects into the interview framework, including academic research and practical experience, has emerged as commonplace when using a phenomenological approach.^42,43

We used a semistructured format when conducting phone interview sessions to encourage discourse between the researcher and participant. An independent company transcribed all of our interviews verbatim, and field notes were taken by a researcher during each interview session as a means to capture key experiences and reflections made by each participant. Those field notes serve as a support mechanism during the coding process described next.⁴¹

Data Analysis and Credibility

We selected a thematic analysis with principles of an interpretative phenomenological analysis^42,44 to code our data. We believed blending both analyses would allow for a rigorous examination of the raw data. Both strategies are fundamentally linked through the inductive lens that is considered when making sense of the data and those living the experience under investigation.⁴⁴ During step 1, 2 researchers read the data as a means to become familiar with its content, attempting to inductively identify patterns in the data. We used simple codes detailed in the transcripts to accomplish this step. During step 2, initial codes were evaluated and then integrated or regrouped to create categories that reflected the meaning of the data. During step 3, the categories identified were organized and combined into meaningful themes. During this step, categories that were not viewed as dominant or a fit were excluded. During step 4, codes were defined and supported with raw data from the transcripts. The data we selected allowed for a rich description of the findings and a means to support our coding strategies. The final step, a credibility check, was completed with 1 participant. Our synopsis of our findings was shared with our pilot study participant, and she was asked to evaluate our interpretations compared with her experiences and confirm their accuracy. The process was completed in person and was supportive of our analysis.

We purposefully selected credibility measures using the parameters outlined by Creswell,⁴¹ including credibility check (as just detailed), peer review, and researcher triangulations. We selected our peer carefully, as we wanted the person to have a strong knowledge of the topic being studied. Our peer not only had a strong scholarly record, but also fit the inclusion criteria for participation. The peer was not part of the study as a participant, but her experiences allowed for an external review that was founded on lived experience. Researcher triangulation was completed through the independent analysis of the raw data after our analysis approach described previously. Upon completion of the interpretative phenomenological analysis process, we had the 2 researchers exchange coding sheets and labeled transcripts to complete the process. Both researchers were trained in the analysis before engaging in the process, and the exchange resulted in the findings presented next.⁴¹

Motherhood and Faculty Life

Work-life balance has been a growing concern for today's working professional, and the reasons are multifaceted.^26,45,46 As more women⁴⁷ are present in the workforce, these individuals may face greater demands to juggle responsibilities from work, home, and family domains. Despite the demographic shift in academia,²⁶ where more women are entering faculty roles, issues with gaining tenure appear to be gendered.^48–50 Our participants, regardless of family status, were acutely aware that balancing faculty roles are made more challenging with children. Jamie shared,

I think [it's] just very, very difficult to try to get tenure and be successful in academia as a parent. I just didn't see very many people being successful doing that, I didn't really see the, for me personally the, had no interest in trying to balance all that, so it's just easier not to have children.

Several of our women faculty members without children reflected about the difficulties they see colleagues encounter when attempting to earn tenure. Jesse, who did not have kids, said,

I can tell you on a daily basis I don't know how I would do this if I had a family. I really do, and look at some of my colleagues who are going through the process, who have a husband and 2 kids. I have no idea how they are doing it, because it's a challenge for me, without the responsibility.

Evidence suggests that women who want a career in higher education and a family are more likely to suffer from the “baby penalty.”⁵¹ US News and World Report⁵¹ indicates that women in academia suffer more disadvantages than women with children in law or medicine. Specifically, in higher education settings there is heavy pressure to maintain productivity and high levels of teaching. Therefore, family planning, having children and caring for them, is often seen as a secondary thought,⁴⁵ or something to be considered after tenure. The data support this message, as married men with children under 6 are 50% more likely to earn tenure than women with the same status. Overall, men are more likely to earn tenure regardless of marital and family status.⁵² Family demands, especially when children are young, place a greater strain on the faculty member, as the needs of the children often come first, and at times are unpredictable (eg, illness, school activities). Furthermore, it is often the mother who will feel the pressure to take care of the child and sacrifice work deadlines or responsibilities.⁵³ Nursing faculty reported significant improvements in work-life balance after earning tenure and when their children were older and less dependent on them. Faculty working within the landscape of academic medicine must balance expectations of clinical relevance and productivity as defined within the higher education climate.⁴⁰ To be successful, then, faculty may opt to delay having a family to reduce outside stress. Karen was very direct: “I have delayed family planning because of my position in higher education.” Amanda shared this thought: “I think probably, to be quite honest with you, there's a little part of me that I would imagine you can't have children while you're going through tenure.” This reflection indicates that despite AAUP recommendations for supporting family planning (ie, policies on child care, parental leave, and stopping tenure clock), careful consideration of the potential impacts is critical to maintaining success as a female faculty member.⁶

Family formation¹⁵ has been identified as a negative career influence for women, as many struggle to achieve success or maintain productivity at a level that is considered acceptable for higher education. Among tenured faculty, 70% of men are married with children, whereas only 44% of women are married with children.²² Vanessa was direct on the impact motherhood had on her success: “[Motherhood,] from a research standpoint, has changed. I might be a little less prolific. Having [daughter's name] did, I guess, impact a little bit of my research success.” Although none of our participants discussed feeling the need to choose a career or family, as other scholars have found,^54,55 there was a consensus that having children confounded the success of each role, and that sacrifices often occur to balance it all.

A Culture of Balance

The growing interest in the work and family interface has compelled organizations to develop policies and invest in resources to support the pursuit of work-life balance for the working professional. These work-life policies and practices have been viewed as structural, where formal policies exist that are supported and documented by human resources, and cultural, where less formalized but useful policies and practices exist within the workplace.⁴⁶ Policies often emanate from the values or norms cultivated by coworkers and supervisors.⁵⁶ Formal policies that are disseminated from human resources are important for the working professional, often including maternity leave and sick time. However, what seemed to be more noticeable and meaningful for our participants were the informal work-life balance initiatives within their departments and institutions. The culture as described by our participants was informal and founded on work-scheduling flexibility that was supportive of work-life balance.

Support Networks

The importance of having a support system has become a steadfast recommendation for the creation of work-life balance,⁶² a finding that also emerged from our interviews. Support systems are divided into 2 main categories: work and home. As previously described, our female faculty benefited from a culture that was flexible, thus creating a sense that balance was possible, though still challenging. A distinguishing characteristic of this culture was the relationships between coworkers, and at times their ability to help facilitate balance, or minimally the ability to meet the demands of life.

Individual Work-Life Balance Strategies

Research has suggested that working professionals must develop individualized strategies to manage their responsibilities in and out of the workplace.^3,36 Strategies must reflect their own personal goals and objectives, but also their strengths and obligations. Planning and time management are often the foundation of these individual strategies. Our participants described being planners and needing to organize their responsibilities at work and home. Karen shared that she was “task orientated.” She believed this allowed her to remain focused and set the time needed to accomplish her responsibilities and expectations set for the week. Brooke shared about her personal strategies,

I'm definitely a planner and, planning ahead and knowing what I have going on a couple days in advance just so there's no surprises or anything like that. I mean definitely just you making lists, staying on track, making sure prep is done, following the schedule and things like that.

During our interview sessions, many of our participants shared the need for “structure,” “organization,” and “boundaries,” but often those were compartmentalized to the various roles they would assume each day. Effective time management essentially is the platform for work-life balance, as we need to allocate the time, energy, and resources we have to perform each of the duties in our lives. Many shared the importance of “making lists,” “staying on track,” and “scheduling time for each task or responsibility.” This is not a surprising finding, as anecdotal and empirical reports⁶² have described the need for time management and the ability to stay on task. Athletic trainers have been found to be individuals who prioritize and use to-do lists as a means to balance their workdays,³ which affords a sense of balance through control over scheduling, completion of tasks, and the reward of completing those tasks. As Marsh⁶⁸ suggests in a 2010 TED talk, we must take control over our own work-life balance and not leave it up to others and expect for it to organically happen. Setting priorities and boundaries through time management practices can allow a faculty member the chance to have control over when and where the work gets done.

The importance of boundaries and priorities is also critical in the academic culture. The trap of being accessible 24-7 because of advancements in technology (e-mail, texts, etc), is the primary culprit and pitfall for creating conflict, because it can allow constant communication without separation of roles. Many of our participants shared the need to be organized, but also to set guidelines and expectations with peers, collaborators, and students. For example, Rebecca shared,

I think it's really helpful to set boundaries with students, so even though I have e-mail on my phone and I can constantly check it, I purposefully only respond to students during a certain period of time each day. They realize then I am not always available to them. I have seen others fall into the trap, they are always answering e-mails and working late because of it.

Rebecca's comments reflect the importance of making conscious decisions regarding when to work and when not to engage in work-related activities. Also, as Highwood³² suggests, we should avoid the acceptance of the 24-7 culture and work smarter. The reflections also suggest that a mindset that is enriched, rather than conflicted, is important. Setting boundaries can allow for enjoyment to be felt, as faculty members can focus their energies on each role, without a negative spillover.