More hats than hours? Examining the associations between role sequence patterns, well‐being, demographics and work‐related characteristics across two countries

Abstract Work‐nonwork role transitions are known to affect well‐being, yet most research has examined these transitions as isolated events. We adopted a temporal structure perspective to examine common patterns of daily role transitions using sequence analysis based on the order, duration, timing and frequency of role engagement. Study 1 (UK Time Use Survey data, N = 1036) identified three common sequences: Conventional Workers (traditional 9‐to‐5 structure), Blenders (more integrated role transitions) and Work‐First Schedulers (early and extended work activities). Blenders reported lower general mental health than Conventional Workers. Study 2 (US Time Use Survey data, N = 1186) again identified Conventional Workers and Blenders. Instead of Work‐First Schedulers, we identified Evening Workers, who start work late and extend work activities into the (late) evening. Evening Workers reported lower meaningfulness and greater sadness than Conventional Workers. Our findings reveal both cross‐national consistency and context‐specific variation in daily role sequences. The presence of shared patterns across samples underscores common rhythms in work‐nonwork role engagement. Meanwhile, the emergence of unique context‐specific patterns appears to stem from differences in occupational characteristics, industry contexts and pandemic timing. Our study advances micro‐role transitions research by capturing the unfolding nature of daily roles and their implications for well‐being.