When Gender Beliefs Meet Life Roles: How Marriage, Parenthood, and Culture Shape Employed Women’s Work Centrality

Socio-cultural beliefs establish gender expectations that position men above women; nevertheless, these beliefs are not merely societal but also exist in the minds of employed women who are harmed by this hierarchy. This study investigated the moderating effects of marital status (MS), reproductive status (RS), emancipative values, and secular values on the relationship between gender status beliefs (GSB) and relative centrality of work (RCW) for employed women. Using representative samples ( N = 57,240) from 170 societies across Waves 5, 6, and 7 of the World Values Survey, we find that GSB are negatively associated with RCW. At the individual level, this negative relationship is stronger among unmarried women and those with more children. At the societal level, the relationship is attenuated in contexts characterized by high emancipative values, while strengthened in societies with high secular values. These findings support prevailing theories regarding the mechanisms through which GSB shape women’s work attitudes, while also offering novel insights that extend and refine the existing literature. The results further suggest important practical implications for addressing persistent gender inequality in the workplace.