SARAH JOHNSON Curtin University JIANGHONG LI Curtin University* GARTH KENDALL Curtin University** LYNDALL STRAZDINS The Australian National University*** PETER JACOBY The University of Western Australia**** Mothers’ and Fathers’ Work Hours, Child Gender, and Behavior in Middle Childhood This study examined the association between typical parental work hours (including nonem- ployed parents) and children’s behavior in two-parent heterosexual families. Child behavior was measured by the Child Behav- ior Checklist (CBCL) at ages 5, 8, and 10 in the Western Australian Pregnancy Cohort (Raine) Study ( N = 4,201 child-year observa- tions). Compared to those whose fathers worked Curtin Health Innovation Research Institute, Centre for Population Health Research, Curtin University Perth, Australia (sarahj@ichr.uwa.edu.au). *Current address: Social Science Research Center Berlin, Reichpietschufer 50, 10785 Berlin, Germany. **Curtin Health Innovation Research Institute, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Curtin University, G.P.O. Box U1987, Perth, Western Australia, 6845, Australia. ***National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, College of Medicine, Biology & Environment, Building 62, M Block, Australian National University, ACT, Australia. ****Telethon Institute for Child Health Research, Centre for Child Health Research, The University of Western Australia, P.O. Box 855, West Perth, Western Australia, 6872, Australia. This article was edited by David Demo. Key Words: maternal employment, mental health, mid- dle childhood, parental investment/involvement, paternal employment, work hours. fewer hours per week, children whose fathers worked 55 hours or more per week had sig- nificantly higher levels of externalizing behav- ior. This association was not explained by father – child time during the week, poorer fam- ily functioning, or overreactive parenting prac- tice. Further, when stratifying the analysis by child gender, this association appeared to exist only in boys. Mothers’ work hours were unre- lated to children’s behavioral problems. The role of parent and child gender in the relationships between parental work hours and children’s behavioral problems, together with mediating factors, warrants further investigation. Although the average amount of time parents spend with their children has increased in recent years (Bianchi & Milkie, 2010), the quantity and quality of parent – child time is still raised as a concern. Studies in the United States and Australia point to a desire among parents to work fewer hours and spend more time with their children and a wish among children that parents would come home from work less tired and stressed (Bianchi & Milkie; Galinsky, 1999; Pocock & Clarke, 2005). Despite continuing concerns of parents and children, the extent to which long parental work hours pose a problem for children and how they 56 Journal of Marriage and Family 75 (February 2013): 56 – 74 DOI:10.1111/j.1741-3737.2012.01030.x