Women Employment and Health

The primary aim, as set out in the Introduction, is to explore women’s specific difficulties regarding labour market outcomes in the first decade of the 21st century, related to their dual role as mothers and labour force participants. The overarching context of the thesis is a contemporary profile of the working woman in Great Britain who is struggling to balance motherhood and paid work successfully, with the consequences this might have for her mental health. This thesis contains three empirical chapters exploring women’s employment and health interactions, through the consequences of the 2008/9 economic crisis on the UK gender wage gap, the effects of postpartum depression on maternal employment after childbirth, and the potential long-term impacts of postpartum depression on children’s emotional health and cognitive developmental outcomes. Specifically, this thesis seeks to address the following research questions: Did the great recession affect the wage gender gap? Does postpartum depression affect employment? Does postpartum depression predict emotional and cognitive difficulties in 11 year olds? Recent estimates reveal that 1 in 10 children aged 5-16 years have a diagnosable mental health problem and 1 in 5 mothers suffer from perinatal mental disorders, which highlight how widespread mental health problems are and how important the promotion of good mental health and prevention is at crucial stages in development. The results of the three empirical chapters of the thesis point to the need for an innovative and comprehensive approach to the distinct problems faced by different groups and sub-categories within the population.