Academics' Experiences of Work-Life Balance and Work-Life Conflict in a Familialist State: The case of Bosnia and Herzegovina

1 Academics’ Experiences of Work-Life Balance and Work-Life Conflict in a Familialist State: The case of Bosnia and Herzegovina Sara Clavero, Technological University Dublin, [email protected] Caitriona Delaney, Technological University Dublin, [email protected] Abstract Background: This paper explores how women academics in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) navigate work-life conflict and the main strategies they deploy to balance their work and personal lives. It examines the range of institutional support available to them and assesses their effectiveness in facilitating work-life balance and reducing work-life conflict. Methods: Drawing on 12 semi-structured interviews with academics at various career stages from public and private universities across BiH, this study captures personal narratives of managing work and caregiving responsibilities. Results: Thematic analysis revealed the respondents’ personal strategies to find work-life balance while trying to achieve their career goals, alongside the institutional factors acting as either barriers or enablers. Findings highlight the normalization of work-life conflict, often perceived as a ‘natural’ and ‘expected’ feature of academic life. The broader societal context and informal support networks -particularly collegial and familial–emerged as pivotal in shaping the respondents’ experiences and efforts to achieve work-life balance and to reduce work-life conflict. Conclusions: This paper adds to research on BiH and work life balance via its illustration of the multilayered experiences of academic life in BiH. Analysis of the interviews highlights the strategies employed by the respondents and the barriers they encounter, including gaps in institutional support to scaffold academics to achieve work-life balance. Introduction This study was developed within the framework of the EDIRE project, funded by the European Commission under the Horizon Europe R&I Program (Grant Agreement Number 101060145). The project aims to strengthen research capacities and Equality Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) at the Sarajevo School of Social Science and Technology (SSST) and, more broadly, across Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). While work-life balance is widely acknowledged as a key factor in fostering gender equality, a survey conducted at SSST as part of the project revealed that the majority of respondents did not view work-life balance challenges as a major obstacle to their career advancement (Bozzon et al., 2017; Brough et al., 2020; Lendák-Kabók, 2022; Rosa, 2022). This finding stands in sharp contrast 2 to a substantial body of research highlighting the challenges academics face in achieving work-life balance and the adverse effects of work-related demands. Motivated by this discrepancy, the authors conducted an in-depth qualitative study, albeit with a small sample, across universities in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The aim was to gain a deeper insight into the lived experiences of academics in BiH and to contribute to the existing knowledge base by addressing this gap in the literature. This paper draws from data collected from 12 semi-structured interviews conducted in October 2023 with academics at various career stages from universities in Banja Luka, Mostar, Sarajevo, and Tuzla. Data collection was guided by the following overarching research questions: How do academics in BiH experience work-life conflict and what strategies do they deploy to balance their work and personal lives? What barriers do they encounter in achieving work-life balance? What are the main gaps in the range of institutional support available? There is no universally accepted definition of work-life balance or work-life conflict. Work-life balance has been conceptualized in various ways: as the mere absence of conflict between work and personal life; as the degree of engagement and satisfaction an individual derives from both spheres; or as the successful negotiation and fulfilment of role-related expectations shared between the individual and their partners in work and family spheres (O’Driscoll et al., 2006; Greenhaus et al., 2003; Grzywacz & Carlson, 2007). On the other hand, work-life conflict has been broadly defined as a tension between one’s professional responsibilities and personal and family life. It includes conflict on how time is spent as well as role conflicts, that is, feeling pulled in competing directions by the multiple roles and duties an individual must fulfil (Jackson & Fransman, 2018; Jacob et al., 2008; Netemeyer et al., 1996; Li & Peguero). Considering this variety of definitions, in this paper, work-life balance and work-life conflict are understood as social constructs that are deeply ingrained in the organization of academic life. As social constructs, we understand these concepts as subjective and fluid (changing between individuals, contexts, and over time), while also agreeing with Rosa and other authors that how these concepts are both understood and experienced depends on one’s gender (Rosa, 2022). In exploring 3 how individuals attempt to balance an academic career with life outside of work in BiH, the study draws from and adds to the literature on both work-life balance and work-life conflict in the Higher Education sector in Europe. The paper begins by providing brief contextual information on BiH, including a review of family policy instruments and a discussion of familialism. It then proceeds with a review of relevant literature, followed by a detailed account of the research methodology. The subsequent sections present and analyze the findings derived from the interviews, culminating in a summary of key insights and concluding reflections. Gender, paid labour and care in BiH BiH may be considered an outlier regarding social policy, not only when compared with other former Yugoslav countries but also in relation to EU member states. In this section, we first examine gendered perceptions of paid labor and care, before turning to family policy instruments in the following section, which are discussed in the context of familialism. Our intention is to situate to work and other facets of life in BiH within a broader context that may shape experiences of work-life balance and work-life conflict in this country. Background In BiH, formerly part of Yugoslavia, the current political structure consists of the decentralized Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH), the centralized Republic of Srpska (RS), and the District of Brcko (DB). After the war ended in the 1990s, benefit levels declined across all former Yugoslav countries, but the decrease was particularly pronounced in BiH and Croatia, both of which were severely impacted by the war (Puljiz, 2008). The transition from socialism to capitalism, combined with processes of nation and state building, was accompanied by a weak gender equality agenda and limited fiscal capacities. welfare, labor, and economic reforms introduced during the post-war transition period often reinforced gendered socio-economic injustice (Dobrotić, 2022; Kadić Abaz & Hadžic, 2020; Mulalić & Jeleškovic, 2022). In BiH, several legal instruments have been adopted to 4 address women’s subordinate roles, such as the Law on Gender Equality (adopted in 2003). However, the implementation of these laws is often regarded as insufficient (Kadić Abaz & Hadžic, 2020). BiH society is widely characterized as both patriarchal and traditional (Majstorović, 2011). After World War II, women became increasingly equal and emancipated. However, this trajectory shifted after the war in the 1990s, when patriarchal regimes and norms were reasserted. Reform proposals during this period often privileged traditional, gendered forms of labor within both the private and public spheres, signalling a return to the hetero-normativity and patriarchal structures of the pre-socialist era (Dobrotić, 2022; Pavasović Trošt & Slootmaeckers, 2020; Majstorović, 2011; Lai, 2020). Within BiH families, women are typically regarded as the primary caregivers, while men are not expected to play a part in it (Arslanagić-Kalajdžić et al., 2023). As in many countries throughout the world, women engaged in paid employment frequently shoulder the bulk of care and household task, although women in BiH spend more time on care work than their counterparts in the EU overall (Obradović, 2021; Kadić Abaz & Hadžic, 2020). Notably, perceptions of women’s domestic role are not confined to men but are also widely shared among women. Between 2015 and 2018, support for egalitarian gender roles declined, reflected in a 24% drop in citizens who believed that men and women should be equal (Obradović, 2021). This trend suggests a broad consensus across genders regarding the traditionally prescribed each is expected to fulfil (Kadić Abaz & Hadžic, 2020). Familialism Familialism is a social system in which the family is considered as the primary locus of care and support (Javornik, 2014; Leitner, 2003). It operates both at the policy level and within everyday practices, sustained by a tacit consensus at macro and micro levels that family members are the most appropriate caregivers (Zaviršek & Fischbach, 2023). Scholars distinguish between three forms of familialism: 1) ‘Familialism by default,’ where the state assumes that care is provided by the family; 2) ‘Prescribed familialism,’ in which legislation explicitly encourages family-based care, placing responsibility on relatives to provide and/or finance support; 5 and 3) ‘Supported familialism,’ which recognizes the family as the main provider of care but introduces policies to assist caregivers, with the aim of promoting women’s labor market participation and advancing gender equality (Saraceno, 2016). By contrast, defamilization refers to systems in which the state assumes primary responsibility for care provision (Savinskaya, 2024). Defamilisation strategies include ‘supported defamilialisation’ through the market, where the state provides cash benefits to enable to purchase care services, and secondly, ‘defamilisation through public provision,’ where care services are directly provided by the state (Verbakel et al., 2023). Importantly, different forms of familialism and defamilization can coexist within a single welfare system (Verbakel et al., 2023). BiH, alongside other Western Balkan countries, is often regarded as a society in which traditional values prevail, with the family serving as the dominant provider of care for children, older people, and persons with disabilities (Košarac & Kurteš, 2021; Obradović & Jusic, 2021). This reliance on familybased care has “serious consequences for gender equality in the country, as informal or family carers are usually women” (Dobrotić & Stropnik, 2020). Family policy instruments In BiH, family policy instruments can be grouped into three main categories: 1) child and family benefits, 2) parental leave policies, and 3) early childhood education and care (ECEC) and long-term care (LTC) (Dobrotić, 2019). Child and family benefits are administered at the level of autonomous regions and remain among the least-funded schemes overall, accounting for only 2.5% of total social protection expenditure (Dobrotić & Obradović, 2020). With respect to parental leave, BiH experienced the sharpest post-1990 erosion of maternity rights among post-socialist Western Balkan countries (Dobrotić, 2019). Decentralization in the late 1990s exacerbated territorial inequalities, with maternity benefits withdrawn in some areas (Dobrotić & Obradović, 2020). Fathers (excluding those in the Brčko District) may access maternity leave after the 42nd or 60th day following childbirth, but only with the mother’s consent to transfer the leave, and only if both parents are employed and the mother returns to work while the father is on leave. This 6 mother-centered approach, combined with entrenched traditional gender roles, reinforces gendered divisions of care and employment. For instance, in 2020, 256 women took maternity leave compared to just 11 men (Agency of Statistics Bosnia and Herzegovina, 2022). Efforts to increase fathers’ participation began in 2000, largely in connection with EU negotiations and alignment with the EU parental leave directive (Dobrotić & Stropnik, 2020). ECEC provision has also declined since the socialist period, partly due to the destruction of facilities during the 1990s war. In 2019, there were approximately 7,000 fewer ECEC places than in the 1990s, leaving provision inadequate for the preschool population (Dobrotić, 2019). Public ECEC services remain underdeveloped and inaccessible to many children across post-Yugoslav countries, with Slovenia as an exception, having introduced a legal entitlement in 1996. In BiH, by contrast, mandatory ECEC programs are not uniformly regulated across cantons (Dobrotić, 2019). As a result, BiH ranks second to last globally in terms of the proportion of children enrolled in childcare services (ArslanagićKalajdžić et al., 2023). Long-term care (LTC) policies place legal responsibility on families to provide for dependent members, including persons with disabilities and older relatives, while public services remain limited (Obradović, 2021). Government-financed LTC allowances are insufficient, underfunded, and discriminatory. The scarcity of quality services means that families bear the primary burden of care, with institutional placement often becoming a last resort once home-based care is no longer manageable (Obradović & Jusić, 2021). Unsurprisingly, this reliance on family-based provision disproportionately affects women, constraining their participation in paid employment and shaping their labor market experiences. In sum, coherence across family policy instruments (child and family benefits, parental leave, ECEC, and LTC) is essential for balancing care, employment, and gender equality. Yet such coherence is currently absent in BiH, partly due to fragmented provision across state, regional, and employer levels (Moss & Deven, 2020; Dobrotić, 2022). The lack of an integrated family policy contributes to underdeveloped care services and entrenched regional and occupational inequalities in maternity and 7 other family benefits. As we argue later in this paper, this fragmented context directly shapes how academics in BiH experience and navigate work-life balance and work-life conflict. Work-life balance and work-life conflict in academic settings Debates on work-life balance in academia have shifted from a focus on individual choice and investment to structural and organizational determinants (Bozzon et al., 2017). Neoliberal agendas and hegemonic work– centric models in universities significantly impact the work-life balance of academics. Within the neoliberal university, the everyday life of academics is determined by organizational practices and cultural norms modelled on the myth of the total availability of a solitary researcher (Benschop & Brouns, 2003; Busso & Rivetti, 2014; Peroni et al., 2015). This ideal is reinforced by precarious employment, competitiveness, high mobility, and expectations of hyperproductivity, all of which affect how academics plan and negotiate their private and professional lives (Rosa, 2022). While both men and women encounter challenges with work-life balance in the context of the neoliberal university, women are more likely than men to experience work-life conflict (O’Laughlin & Bischoff, 2025). Female faculty members often report timeand strain-based conflicts, noting that parenthood and caregiving responsibilities reduce opportunities for research, travel, networking, and daily academic work (Bozzon et al., 2017). Women are also more likely than men to experience frustration and guilt when forced to make difficult decisions, as care provision and family obligations are often perceived as detracting from full professional commitment (Bomert & Leinfellner, 2017; Drew & Marshall, 2020). These dynamics reflect gendered organizational structures and entrenched societal gender stereotypes, with many women considering career interruptions or even leaving academia because caregiving responsibilities are still predominantly framed as women’s work (Mulalić & Jeleškovic, 2022). The struggle for women academics to achieve and sustain work-life balance is particularly acute in societies where women are expected to shoulder both paid labor and the entirety of domestic and care duties. BiH exemplifies such a context (Hartig et al., 2007; Pettigrew, 2021; Lendák-Kabók, 2022). 8 Strategies used by female academics in BiH to achieve work-life balance and reduce work-life conflict include negotiating more equal sharing of caregiving within partnerships and adopting “double” or “split” shifts (alternating between paid employment and unpaid domestic labor) with heavy reliance on husbands and extended family (Mulalić & Jeleškovic, 2022). These micro‑level coping mechanisms, however, leave intact the organizational structures that underpin academic work. Many women academics in BiH perceive that their male colleagues advance more easily, given their comparatively limited domestic responsibilities, and report not being taken seriously due to prevailing societal beliefs that a woman’s place is in the home (Mulalić & Jeleškovic, 2022). Institutional arrangements and family and social policies are therefore critical to making work-life balance attainable for both men and women, yet significant improvements remain necessary in BiH (Mulalić & Jeleškovic, 2022). Building on this body of research, the present paper examines the lived experiences of women academics in BiH as they attempt to reconcile academic careers with life outside of work. It also explores their perceptions of the institutional mechanisms required to reduce work-life conflict, facilitate career progression, and advance gender equality. To this end, we identified key discursive frames through analysis of narratives gathered in a series of semi‑structured interviews, to which we now turn. Methodology The data for this study were collected through semi‑structured interviews with 12 female academics from five universities in BiH, located across four cities: Banja Luka (one university), Sarajevo (two universities), Mostar (one university), and Tuzla (one university). Participants represented a range of disciplines and career stages (see Table 1 for respondent details). Semi‑structured interviews were selected as the most appropriate method, as they enable the research to remain focused while allowing unexpected insights to emerge (Adeoye‑Olatunde & Olenik, 2021). This format also facilitates the exploration of participants’ experiences, understandings, and 9 perspectives on specific topics (McGrath et al., 2019). An interview guide was developed following a review of the literature and the formulation of the study’s research questions. Sampling was conducted using purposive snowballing, beginning with the authors’ professional networks in Sarajevo, who were asked to identify potential respondents. All interviews were conducted face‑to‑face, lasted between 40 minutes and one hour, and were recorded with participants’ consent. Transcripts were anonymized, with each respondent assigned a code (e.g., R1, R2), which is used throughout the Findings section. Table 1 - Respondent Information Respondent Care Obligations Marital Status Gender Career Stage R1 Two young children and a sick mother Married F Senior Teaching Assistant R2 Two young children Married F Senior Teaching Assistant R3 Adult child Married F Professor R4 Two young children one with additional needs Married F Professor R5 Two older children and elderly parents Married F Senior Teaching Assistant R6 Yes Married F Professor R7 None Single F Teaching Assistant R8 Two young children Married F Professor R9 None Single F Professor R10 Two older children and a sick elderly mother Married F Professor R11 Two young two children Married F Associate Professor R12 Two young children Married F Associate Professor Informed consent was obtained from all participants. Data were anonymized, and respondents are referenced in the findings using their assigned codes (e.g., R1). Ethical approval was granted by the institution’s Ethics Committee following submission of the research plans. 16 Finally, R5 highlighted the importance of parental support in enabling her to balance professional and family responsibilities: I need to balance my education, my stressful work, and my family because at the same time I want to be a good mother, to keep my family together […] When my children were smaller, they attended pre-care and post-care until I finished my work. I then arranged everything with my husband. I was also very lucky to have my parents, and they are in good health. They help me a lot, but without them, I couldn't make it at all (R5). In sum, respondents’ reliance on “luck” to describe support from colleagues, institutions, and family members underscores the normalization of inadequate formal support structures. This discursive framing shifts responsibility for work‑life balance and conflict onto individuals, obscuring the structural and institutional dimensions of the problem. This issue will be explored further in the Discussion section. Discussion and conclusions The analysis of the interviews illustrates the multilayered experiences of academics in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). Respondents’ accounts shed light on how they encounter work‑life balance and work‑life conflict, the strategies they employ, and the barriers they face—particularly the absence of institutional support structures that could scaffold academics in achieving balance. A salient theme was the expectation that work‑life conflict, or at the very least struggles with balance, is an inherent feature of academic life. Many respondents described working late into the evening and on weekends as congruent with the demands of academia. Everyday life for academics was thus shaped not only by professional expectations but also by broader societal norms. Exploring strategies, barriers, and institutional gaps provides a window into the wider societal context in BiH, where academics’ coping mechanisms are constructed within a framework of familialism, patriarchy, and political complexity. Respondents’ strategies often involved working a “double” or “split” shift—combining paid labor with unpaid domestic responsibilities. While this phenomenon is 17 not unique to BiH, it is particularly pronounced in societies where women are expected to shoulder both professional and domestic duties (Kadić Abaz & Hadžić, 2020). The data highlight how work‑life balance and conflict are frequently viewed as “natural” features of academic careers. Respondents often reduced the challenge to individual responsibility, emphasizing personal strategies such as time management, organization, or sacrifice of leisure. Several noted that if one is unwilling to work long hours, sacrifice free time, and prioritize career over personal life, academia may not be a suitable path. This framing underscores how work‑life balance is individualized rather than understood as a structural issue. The repeated invocation of “luck” further illustrates this dynamic. Respondents described support from family, colleagues, or institutions as a matter of fortune rather than entitlement. This discursive framing conceals the demanding nature of academic work and shifts responsibility away from universities and the state, leaving individuals to manage balance largely on their own. Strategies employed by respondents ranged from careful organization and workload management (R10, R8) to reliance on family networks for childcare and elder care. Yet these strategies were often insufficient in a context where societal expectations reinforce women’s double burden. For example, R9 described working evenings and weekends to “top up” tasks left unfinished during the day, while still ensuring time for family. Barriers to balance were deeply embedded in BiH’s patriarchal and traditional social fabric. Respondents pointed to the dominance of family‑based care, limited childcare provision, and a decentralized political system that complicates policy implementation. Institutional support was notably absent: respondents emphasized the lack of on‑site childcare and the limited availability of flexible work arrangements. R4’s account of being denied flexibility at her university illustrates how institutional cultures can exacerbate conflict and undermine employees’ sense of value. 18 Informal support - whether from colleagues, spouses, or extended family - was described as crucial. Yet even when husbands were supportive, many women positioned themselves as “managers” of the household, responsible for organizing and overseeing domestic life. This reliance on informal networks reflects the dominance of familialism in BiH, where family care is normalized and institutional provision remains scarce. A striking finding is the extent to which respondents have internalized expectations of academic life. Many described struggles with balance as a “natural” part of the profession, reinforcing the idea that academic work is never complete and rarely confined to standard working hours. This normalization of imbalance highlights the need to interrogate how structural and cultural factors shape academics’ lived experiences. This study contributes to research on BiH by demonstrating how work‑life balance and conflict are negotiated within a context of weak institutional support, entrenched gender norms, and familialist social structures. Future research could explore why and how work‑life conflict has become normalized and expected within academia, and how these dynamics intersect with broader societal conditions. Comparative studies across the Western Balkans and European Union member states would further enrich the literature on work‑life balance, work‑life conflict, academia, and gender. Data availability The data underlying this article are available in Zenodo at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17643044 , under the CC-BY 4.0. The dataset includes anonymised and de-identified transcripts of interviews conducted for gathering data for the study. Grant Information The project received funding from the European Union Horizon Europe Research and Innovation Program under Grant Agreement 101060145. The authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose 19 References Adeoye-Olatunde, O. A., & Olenik, N. L. (2021). Research and scholarly methods: Semi-structured interviews. Journal of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy, 4(10), 1358–1367. https://doi.org/10.1002/jac5.1441 Agency of Statistics Bosnia and Herzegovina. (2022). Statistical report. 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