Personality and resilience: Enhancing well-being and reducing negative emotions among working mothers

Working mothers experience a range of emotions associated with parenting while employed. Like all parents, working mothers experience both positive and negative emotions, often existing side-by-side. Despite considerable research into the struggles experienced by working mothers, little is known about negative emotions and their consequences for women. Feelings of employment related guilt and regret over the decision to become a mother may arise when work and family responsibilities are demanding. However, individual resources may play a role in how mothers deal with negative emotions. The aim of the current study was to examine the role of resilience as a mediator between personality traits and negative emotions, psychological health, and well-being among working mothers. Participants of the study consisted of 320 working mothers with a mean age of 39.6. A proposed model was tested using path analysis in AMOS 21. According to the results of the present study, extraversion, neuroticism, and openness to experience are related to resilience; resilience is related to regret, depression, and life satisfaction. Resilience helps working mothers to deal with negative emotions related to well-being including stress, anxiety, depression, and life satisfaction.