Working from home, household-task equality, and gendered pathways to well-being and work outcomes

Purpose This study examines whether working from home (WFH) intensity is related to household-task equality and whether this household condition functions as a relational home-domain resource linking WFH with work-family balance, life satisfaction and work outcomes among working parents. Design/methodology/approach We analyzed survey data from 765 participants (234 men and 531 women) and estimated gender-specific path models from WFH intensity to work-family balance, life satisfaction, job performance, and job satisfaction, mediated via childcare, cleaning, finance, and repair/trash responsibilities. A spouse subsample provided convergent evidence for key household measures. Findings Moderate and extensive WFH were linked more consistently to greater male participation in childcare and cleaning than to reductions in women's domestic shares. Men's childcare involvement showed the clearest downstream links to work-family balance and life satisfaction and, indirectly, to work outcomes. For women, WFH was less strongly related to household-task reallocation, and work-family balance was the most proximal predictor of work outcomes. Practical implications Organizations should establish transparent hybrid-eligibility criteria, legitimize men's use of flexibility for caregiving, and support boundary management so that flexibility does not intensify women's unpaid workload or tele-pressure. Social implications Flexibility can support more equal father involvement, but persistent gender norms still shape those whose unpaid work is visible, valued, and translated into well-being gains. Originality/value We extend Job Demands-Resources theory by conceptualizing household-task equality as a relational and negotiated resource condition that is indirectly shaped by work design. We theorize a staged cross-domain conversion process in which work arrangements alter time availability and co-presence; these conditions are translated into household labour allocation; and the resulting household configuration is associated with psychological states and work outcomes. Gender is theorized as a boundary condition that shapes the efficiency of this conversion process.