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Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic led to an unprecedented employer-driven shift to remote/hybrid work for those whose jobs allow it, but then came retrenchments, forging disjunctures between where one works (remote/hybrid or in-person) and individual preferences, which we term work-place mismatch. We draw on a combined worker power, employer biases, and adaptive strategy theoretical framing to investigate work-place mismatch in light of remarkable pandemic-precipitated shifts in place of work, opening up possibilities (and preferences) for remote/hybrid arrangements. In addition to examining inequities in work-place mismatch, we theorize employees’ possible adaptive strategies when confronting such mismatch—shifting where they work, changing their locational preferences, or intending to leave or actually leaving their employer. Using a nationally representative four-wave panel (October 2020–April 2022) of US employees who worked fully or partially remotely during the pandemic, we find that work-place mismatch is widespread, especially among those returning to on-site work. Hispanics, Black men, and those lacking a college degree are most likely to experience unfulfilled interest (mismatch) in remote work. Structurally disadvantaged mismatched workers also experience constrained strategies—less apt to change their work location or quit relative to white or college-educated workers.
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This content will become publicly available on June 24, 2026
Work-place Mismatch, Work-Family Conflict, and Psychological Well-being among Parents
Remote and hybrid work have received much attention since the expansion of off-site work following the COVID-19 pandemic. Research on the effects of these arrangements on workers’ well-being, however, is mixed, likely because studies rarely account for workers’ workplace preferences. Using data from the 2023 wave of the Study on U.S. Parents’ Divisions of Labor During COVID-19 (SPDLC), we assess the association between work-place mismatch (misalignment between preferred and actual work locations) and both work-family conflict and psychological well-being (stress and depressive symptoms) among partnered working parents. Results suggest that most parents report some degree of work-place mismatch, with on-site workers reporting the highest work-place mismatch. We also find that work-place mismatch is positively associated with work-family conflict and negatively associated with parents’ psychological well-being. After accounting for work-place mismatch, parents who work on-site report lower work-family conflict and higher psychological well-being than remote and hybrid workers. Overall, results highlight the need to account for workers’ preferences in understanding the association between work conditions, work-family conflict, and psychological well-being.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2148501
- PAR ID:
- 10615262
- Publisher / Repository:
- Sage
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Society and Mental Health
- ISSN:
- 2156-8693
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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