This study analysed whether gender context is important to differences in the relationship between work-family conflict (WFC) and well-being across Europe. We hypothesised that in countries that support equality in work life and where norms support women's employment, the relationship between WFC and low well-being is weaker than in countries with less support for gender equality. Cohabiting men and women aged 18-65 years from 25 European countries were selected from the European Social Survey. A multilevel analysis was conducted to investigate the relationship between well-being and WFC, and two measurements were used to represent gender context: gender equality in work life and norms regarding women's employment. Contrary to the hypothesis, the results showed that the negative relationship was stronger in countries with high levels of gender equality in work life and support for women's employment than in countries with a relatively low level of gender equality in work life and support for traditional gender relations. The context in which gender is constructed may be important when studying the relationship between WFC and well-being. In addition, emphasis should be placed on policies that equalise both the labour market and the work performed at home.

Dual-earner families are common in Sweden, and most women are involved in the labour market. It has been shown that employees and self-employed individuals perceive their working conditions differently: self-employed individuals are more likely to experience an imbalance between work and family, higher job demands, and the feeling that they must be ''always on.'' Thus, there may also be a difference between employees and self-employed individuals in terms of perceived time strain. Previous studies have identified differences in time-use patterns among men and women who are employed and self-employed. This study uses time-use data to examine potential gender differences among men and women who are self-employed and those who are employees with regard to time strain effects related to time spent on paid and unpaid work in Sweden. The results show that self-employed individuals, particularly self-employed women, report the highest levels of time strain. For self-employed women, an increase in the time spent on paid work reduces perceived time strain levels, whereas the opposite is true for employees and self-employed men. It is primarily individual and family factors, and not time use, that are related to time strain. The results provide evidence that gender differences in time strain are greater among self-employed individuals than among employees.

The aim of this article is to elucidate how male and female managers of small-scale enterprises in Norway and Sweden relate to and experience the intersection between work and private life. A qualitative content analysis was adopted to explore interviews with 18 managers. The analysis resulted in three primary categories: conflict as a part of the deal, using management to construct balance, and management identity contributing to enrichment. A key theme that emerged was doing management. Both men and women reproduced masculine values in describing their management identities and in explaining how they enacted management. This clear identification was used to legitimate conflict, construct balance and explain the interaction between work and private life as enriching. How the managers enacted gender emerged primarily in how they related to family responsibilities and their feelings of guilt in relation to home and children.

Background European policymakers encourage individuals to become self-employed because it is a way to promote innovation and job creation. It can be assumed that health and well-being among the self-employed and managers in small-scale enterprises are particularly crucial in this enterprise group because the smallness of the enterprise makes its members vulnerable. Earlier studies have indicated that the self-employed have a high working pace and work for long and irregular hours, indicating that it can be difficult to stay at home because of sickness. The purpose of this study is to investigate the occurrence of sickness presenteeism among the self-employed in relation to the organizationally employed and to analyze whether any differences can be explained by higher work demands among the self-employed. Methods The study is based on the fifth European survey on working conditions (2010) and includes the northwestern European countries in the survey. The questions cover a wide range of topics designed to meet the European Union's political needs. The main variables in this study are sickness presenteeism and several indicators of time demands. Results The results show that the self-employed report a higher level of sickness presenteeism than the employed: 52.4 versus 43.6%. All indicators of time demands are significantly related to the risk for sickness presenteeism, also when controlling for background characteristics. Conclusion The results confirm that the level of sickness presenteeism is higher among the self-employed and that high time demands are a major explanation to this.