When the doors open: implications of COVID-19 and the work-family interface for women entrepreneurs

Abstract

The crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately affected women, placing them at the waves' center of unpaid work overload. Based on feminist and role theories, this qualitative study examines the motivations and experiences of women who decided to start a business during an overload period of family responsibilities and economic uncertainty caused by COVID-19 and the consequences of this action for the work-family interface. The results obtained that the woman's decision to undertake during the measures of social isolation caused a conflict of roles. Furthermore, it was possible to notice that, although these women make a great effort to balance all functions, the lack of family support and the cohabitation of professional and family tasks within the domestic environment can be perceived as a factor in the aggravation of a family-work conflict. This research enriches the understanding of the COVID 19 pandemic effects on women's work-family balance with entrepreneurial attitudes and behavior.