Partnership Satisfaction and Conflict
among Czech Couples during the
Pandemic-related Employment
Insecurity1
Tomáš Zvoníček, Martin Kreidl, Petr Fučík
ABSTRACT It can be reasonably assumed that the economic consequences of the COVTD-19
pandemic have taken a toll on family and interpersonal relationships. Previous research has established that
job insecurity and financial hardship lead to reduced relationship quality and a higher incidence of partner
conflicts. Our goal is to investigate the dynamics of partnership satisfaction and partnership conflict during
the COVTD-19 pandemic among Czech couples, focusing on pandemic-related employment change and
perceived job insecurity. We use longitudinal panel data from "Czech GGS COVID pilot study", which
was conducted in December 2020, and from a follow-up survey organized in April 2021. Our results show
that the immediate effects of economic hardship during the pandemic were not as strong and uniform as we
expected. Many families apparently had the resources to bear the economic impacts of COVTD-19 in terms
of maintaining subjective relationship quality and curbing conflict between spouses. The most important
conclusion worth further investigation is the gendered nature of these mechanisms. There are contradictory,
gender-specific associations hidden under the weak total effects. This suggests that the perception of family
life could be very different for men and women in relation to economic circumstances.
KEYWORDS COVTD-19 impacts, partnership satisfaction, Gender and Generations Survey, job
insecurity, family
Introduction
Like many other European countries, the Czech Republic went into lockdown in March 2020
and then again in October 2020 to prevent the spread of the virus. The unprecedented
lockdown measures, which lasted until May 2021, were characterized, among other things, by
restrictions on social contacts, limitations on movement, and school closures.2
The measures
had immediate effects on the economy and the labor market, leading to loss or reduction
of income, financial uncertainty, and job insecurity (ILO 2021) and to profound changes
in the daily operation of many households.
Sociální studia/ Social Studies 1/2023. S. 65-87. ISSN 1214-813X. https://doi.org/10.5817/SOC2022-20990
1 This study was financially supported by the Czech Science Foundation (GACR), grant Partnership
satisfaction as a predictor of partnership stability no. GA20-12364S
2
The Oxford COVTD-19 Government Response Tracker (Hale et al. 2021) provides a useful
overview and comparison of governmental measures in each country: https://covidtracker.bsg.ox.ac.uk
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SOCIÁLNI STUDIA / SOCIAL STUDIES 1 / 2 0 2 3
It is likely that the COVID-19 pandemic has therefore taken a toll on family and
interpersonal relationships. In situations of complex social change or crisis such as
natural disasters or pandemics, individuals typically rely on the people closest to them
(Williamson 2020). Relations are exposed to more challenges than in ordinary times,
which may - in some cases - lead to a strengthening of mutual relations (Pietromonaco
and Overall 2021). The pandemic may also take a toll because related life changes such as
employment modifications, reduced income, and job insecurity can spill over into intimate
life (Blom et al. 2020; Bakker and Demerouti 2013). Job insecurity and financial hardship
lead to reduced relationship quality and a higher incidence of partner conflicts (Cheng et
al. 2014; Neppl et al. 2016). However, research examining partnership quality during the
recent pandemic has thus far yielded somewhat mixed conclusions, with some couples
experiencing worsening relationships and others seeing improvements or no change at all
(Balzarini et al. 2020; Mohring et al. 2021; Perelli-Harris and Walzenbach 2020; Schmid
etal. 2021; Vigl et al. 2021).
Our goal is to investigate the dynamics of partnership satisfaction and partnership
conflict during the COVID-19 pandemic among Czech couples, focusing on pandemicrelated
employment change and perceived job insecurity. We start with theories explaining the
negative impact of employment change and insecurity on partnership satisfaction that have
been suggested by prior research, namely the spillover theory (explaining how work-related
emotions are transferred to the home) and the family stress theory (explaining how economic
hardship impacts subjective well-being, which can cause a strain on the partnership). We then
modify these models to match the specific characteristics of the COVID-19 pandemic, which as
a disaster-like widespread, global, existential threat - can multiply these negative effects
on partnership satisfaction, but can also foster attachment and closeness in relationships.
The analysis of the consequences of employment change and insecurity in this
specific pandemic context has thus far only been tentatively outlined in the literature
(Walsh and Stephenson 2021; Balzarini et al. 2020, Biddle et al. 2020). However, given the
unprecedented effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the general importance and protective
nature of fulfilling romantic relationships, it is crucial to specify the situations in which the
effects of work problems on the family may be more significant and especially which social
categories are more exposed to the adverse effects of employment change and job insecurity.
Therefore, we analyze three potential moderators of the effect: respondent's gender,
respondent's education, and the presence of minor children in the household.
Context: Employment in the Czech Republic in the Times of COVID-19
The economic implications of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic will be considerable and
are expected to be comparable in scope to economic crises such as the Great Recession
of 2008-2010 (ILO 2021; Eurofound 2021a: 3). The E U economy contracted by 6.3 %
in 2020, the most significant decline since World War II, with an expected rebound of 5 %
in 2021 (European Commission 2021). Similarly, GDP in the Czech Republic declined by
5.6 % in 2020 and is expected to grow by around 3 % in 2021 (European Commission 2021).
Registered unemployment in the Czech Republic as in the E U increased during the
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Tomáš Zvoníček, Martin Kreidl, Petr Fučík: Partnership Satisfaction and Conflict among...
COVID-19 pandemic, although in the Czech population its year-on-year increase was rather
slight (measured from the outset of the crisis in Q2 2020 to Q l 2021, on average + 0.9 %,
CSU 2021). It is worth noting that, according to Eurofound's "Living, working and COVID-
19" e-survey, about 7 % of Czech people who were employed before the pandemic had lost
their job by spring 2021 (Eurofound 2021b: 2). Moreover, the number of actual weekly hours
worked in the Czech Republic fell by up to 2.8 % year-on-year in Q4 2020 (the strongest
decline in the EU, EU-LFS 2021).
As expected, the effects are not uniform: young people aged 15-24, women, temporary
employees, and less skilled and less educated employees were more at risk of losing their
jobs (in the context of the EU: Garrote Sanchez et al. 2020; Eurofound and European
Commission Joint Research Centre 2021, in the context of the Czech Republic: CNB 2021).
The traditional explanation is that members of these groups are more often employed in
precarious jobs, which makes them generally more exposed to economic fluctuations and
crises. This vulnerability is then exacerbated by the fact that the crisis associated with the
pandemic, as noted by Eurofound (2021a: 10; Eurofound and European Commission Joint
Research Centre 2021: 17), more greatly affected the more female-dominated and low-paid
service sectors such as accommodation, gastro business, travel and tourism, and arts and
entertainment. On the other hand, this effect was partially offset by increased demand in
other sectors of the economy (ILO 2021: 14). For those who kept their jobs, European Union
Labour Force Survey data from 2020 suggest that weekly working hours decreased slightly
more for men than for women, although women were more likely to be temporarily absent
from work or furloughed (Eurofound 2021a: 10; Eurofound and European Commission
Joint Research Centre 2021: 18). Moreover, there was greater resilience to negative labor
market outcomes among those who were able to work remotely, which could have positively
impacted better educated people as a higher level of education is generally strongly correlated
with telecommuting opportunities (Cetrulo et al. 2020).
Nevertheless, the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic go far beyond employment
changes and reduced working hours. One of the most severe and distinguishing implications
of the pandemic is the decline in general well-being triggered by restrictions on social
contacts, general health concerns, and the unprecedented nature of the whole situation.
Severe deterioration in mental health across all social groups has been highlighted by several
studies in national contexts (Zacher and Rudolph 2021; Móhring et al. 2021). The "deadly
cocktail" of economic hardship, well-being issues, and work patterns during the pandemic
(e.g., massive use of telecommuting) combined with the novelty of work circumstances
(notably, the absence of guidelines to direct employee behavior at work) resulted in increased
job insecurity (Lin et al. 2021; Wilson et al. 2020).
Even in pre-pandemic times, many Czech employees felt insecure about their jobs.
In the European context, the Czech Republic once had higher-than-average perceived job
insecurity (about 34 % compared to the European average of 16 % in 2010; EWCS 2012);
however, in recent years, it has relatively declined to about 17 % of employees concerned
about losing their job in next six months (basically at the European average of 16 % in 2015;
EWCS 2016). According to the third round of the "Living, working and COVID-19"
e-survey in March 2021, around 14 % of Czech employees reported the likelihood of losing
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their job in the next three months (the European average was 9 %), with women considering
this slightly more likely than men (Eurofound 2021c).
Theoretical Framework
There is robust evidence that employment loss and job insecurity negatively influence
partnership quality and increase partnership conflict (Bastianelli and Vignoli 2021; Hughes
and Galinsky 1994; Blom et al. 2020). The explanations for such a relationship emerge
from psychological reactions to stressful events in the partner's personal life and economic
outcomes. Prior research suggests two main theories: the spillover theory and the family
stress theory.
The spillover theory supposes that one's life spheres are interfering with each other (Sok
et al. 2014; Kinnunen et al. 2006). The assumption is that "activities in one role can benefit
an individual's activity in another role (...) and quality of life in another domain" (Grzywacz
et al. 2007: 561); conversely, activities in one role may make other roles more difficult.
Job insecurity is most likely to affect partnership quality indirectly through various stress
reactions such as anxiety, concentration problems, fatigue, irritability, and burnout (Mauno
et al. 2017; Dekker and Schaufeli 1995). Several studies have documented the negative
outcomes of perceived job insecurity for family well-being and partnership quality. Partners
experiencing high stress engage in more divisive behavior, such as conflicts; they tend to
make negative attributions emphasizing adverse events in the relationship and report more
partnership discord (Balzarini et al. 2020).
The family stress theory focuses on the consequences of economic hardship, especially
of a loss in income and resulting financial pressure (Blom et al. 2019; Neppl et al. 2016).
This can directly affect the ability to meet basic material needs or to pay bills on time, which
may lead to conflicts in the couple. Unemployment can also lead to the loss of structured
time or a sense of purpose (Hiswáls et al. 2017). Similarly, the mere expectation of economic
hardship may lead to conflict as well as it may hamper partners in making plans (Blom
et al. 2020). This, in turn, leads to increased conflict and reduced intimacy and, therefore,
undermines partnership satisfaction.
Can the COVID-19 pandemic change anything in these assumptions? While research in
this regard is still rather preliminary, some important insights might be offered by examining
the effects of natural disasters and crises on families. Pietromonac and Overall (2020) pointed
out that in unforeseen major crises with high mortality, such as terrorist attacks, many people
experience uncertainty about the world, future attacks, and their being in the world - this
can thus lead to an increase of emotional attachment and the need for security from their
significant others (also Williamson 2020). Events such as natural disasters that are slower in
their pace and consequences and require a longer time to rebuild communities and reclaim
lost assets lead to chronic stress and increase conflicts (Pietromonac and Overall 2020;
Cohan and Cole 2002). The COVID-19 pandemic as a "multisystem, cascading disaster"
(Masten and Motti-Stefanidi 2020) contained elements of both: on the one hand, couples
were facing a novel event of unknown duration and likely a relatively long rebuilding and
recovery process; simultaneously, it was a high-mortality crisis where fear, including for
68
Tomáš Zvoníček, Martin Kreidl, Petr Fučík: Partnership Satisfaction and Conflict among...
one's own health and mortality, was widespread (Pietromonac and Overall 2020; Walsh
and Stephenson 2021). Moreover, it included hitherto completely unfamiliar measures,
such as radical restrictions on social contacts and reduced institutional care for children
and healthcare. However, at the same time, certain aspects can be seen as positive factors
for partnership satisfaction, including more time spent with family and children and more
flexible working conditions.
The empirical evidence has offered ambiguous results. While several studies show
the negative effect of the pandemic on family satisfaction (Móhring et al. 2021; Schmid
et al. 2021; Balzarini et al. 2020; Ahuja and Khurana 2021), some other publications
appear to indicate that the pandemic had no substantial effect (Williamson 2020;
Vigl et al. 2021 found no effect only among cohabitants) or even that it had a positive one
(Biddle et al. 2020; Perelli-Harris and Walzenbach 2020; Canzi et al. 2021).
Similarly, although studies have indicated that we can expect a negative impact
of pandemic-related employment change on partnership satisfaction (Balzarini et al. 2020;
Biddle et al. 2020), it cannot be ruled out that during the COVID-19 pandemic this
impact may be positive in some cases (Walsh and Stephenson 2021; Lim and Tan 2021)
or nonexistent (Ogan et al. 2021). As Walsh and Stephenson (2021) pointed out, those
experiencing employment change or job loss during this time may have been more likely to
attribute their change to broader circumstances as opposed to personal failure, thus lessening
its otherwise documented negative impact on partnership (see also Williamson et al. 2021).
Presumably, the outcome will depend on the number and severity of the various
consequences of the pandemic that the person will face in addition to employment change
or job insecurity. Especially given the duration of the current crisis, it can be expected that
even if couples initially had emotional and social resources to restore their relationship in
the wake of the stressful events, these may have been gradually exhausted (Pietromonac
and Overall 2020). Indeed, this has been confirmed by recent studies that have already had
the opportunity to analyze the late stages of the pandemic (Neff et al. 2021). Above all,
even disasters and pandemics do not take place in a social vacuum; therefore, the degree
to which relationships may be damaged or may thrive is likely to be unevenly distributed.
The COVID-19 pandemic is probably not the "great equalizer" as some mainstream media
have initially portrayed it. Rather, similar to other disasters and crises, it should be seen
as a revealer "of social conditions that are less visible but nonetheless present in everyday
life" (Klinenberg 1999; see also Cohan and Cole 2002). Our research aims to examine this
assumption.
The literature suggests that the associations that we would observe in cross-sectional
data may be spurious. While we can see, for instance, that people report poorer relationship
quality if they also report higher job insecurity, this association is hard to interpret causally,
since we cannot rule out reverse causation or spuriousness of the correlation with crosssectional
data. Hence, if we want to get closer to a real causal impact on family life, we need
a panel that would let us assess - for instance - the impact of a change in job insecurity on
changes in relationship quality, i.e., a within-person change model, which is exactly the kind
of statistical model that we employ in our analyses.
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Hypotheses
To summarize the previous arguments, the main hypothesis in our study can be stated as
follows: partnership dissatisfaction and frequency of conflict will have been increased by
the experience of economic impacts and job insecurity during the pandemic. Additionally
we focus on the role of possible modifying factors, among which we choose sex, education,
and the presence of minor children in the household. There are several arguments for why
men and women may experience and perceive the objective COVID-19 impacts differently
and these distinctions may result in a different effect on the frequency of conflict or the
subjective quality of the relationship. First, there are structural arguments based on gendered
positions in the labor market, their different contributions to the household economy
and their unequal share of the unpaid household work that typically increase during the
pandemic lockdowns. Women facing lower wages and less stable jobs and experiencing
a higher share of unanticipated unpaid work (England 2010), will probably be under more
pressure that is likely to translate the economic impacts of COVID-19 into conflict or
lower partnership satisfaction. This is also suggested by an exploratory study conducted by
Hipp and Bunning (2021) early in the pandemic. Second, considering the broad empirical
evidence about the higher propensity of women to initiate divorce (Vohlídalová 2010), it is
reasonable to expect that women will exhibit and thematize partnership dissatisfaction with
higher sensitivity and reflexivity than men (Carlson et al. 2020). On the other hand, there are
contradicting arguments based on the symbolic aspects of men's position in the labor market,
assuming that the COVID-19 impacts on the economic position will be stronger in men
because of their prevailing social role as the primary breadwinners. Their inability to provide
a household income may reduce men's sense of self-worth as they may be concerned that
they will not meet the traditional gender expectations (Blom et al. 2020; Richter et al. 2010).
As men also tend to make a more significant contribution to the family budget, an endangered
job position for them can also be more stressful in general for both partners (Blom et al. 2020;
Mauno, Cheng, and Lim 2017).
The need to control for education is based on the evidence of the educational gradient in
the stability of marriage, which has also been found in the Czech Republic (Trávníčková and
Kreidl 2021) and the stratified position of education groups on the labor market. Additionally
the pandemic probably amplified social inequalities and socio-economic status modified the
impacts of the pandemic (Chen and Wang 2021). Therefore, we expect that less educated
individuals experienced higher partnership conflict/dissatisfaction mostly because of the
spillover stress that result from their less stable job position and their lower reemployment
chances (Železná and Kreidl 2016). Furthermore, they lacked other sources (housing quality,
savings) resulting in their higher vulnerability (Blom et al. 2020).
The third modifying factor possibly is the presence of minor children in the household,
which changes the dynamic of family life in many aspects. Moreover, during the COVID-19
lockdowns, numerous families faced the necessity of providing daily care as the (pre)schools
were closed,3
helping children with online study, or just sharing the home more intensively.
In the Czech Republic, there were three major school closings including all types of schools
from kindergartens to universities. The first was launched from March 12, 2 0 2 0 , until the end
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Tomáš Zvoníček, Martin Kreidl, Petr Fučík: Partnership Satisfaction and Conflict among...
This has been shown to significantly increase rates of depression and anxiety symptoms in
mothers and fathers (Kerr et al. 2021) and reduce life satisfaction, especially among women
(Zoch et al. 2021). A general negative effect from the pandemic on partnership satisfaction
among parents of minor children has already been confirmed by a recent study by Fleming
and Franzese (2021) on the US population. These circumstances presumably intervene also in
the mechanisms that transform the COVID-19 work impacts into partnership satisfaction or
conflict as they can be another major stressor in addition to possible economic hardship. We
expect the presence of minor children in the family to magnify the effect of COVID-19 work
impacts on partnership satisfaction and the conflict between partners.
Data, Variables, and Methods
D a t a
Data for this study come from the "Czech GGS COVID pilot study", which was conducted in
December 2020 (Kreidl et al. 2021a), and from a follow-up survey organized in April 2021
(Kreidl et al. 2021b).4
The "Czech GGS COVID pilot study" was conducted as a precursor to
the main GGS survey.
This study (with over 1300 respondents) is unusually large for a pilot. Its existence and
especially its size were dictated by both financial and epidemiological circumstances. The pilot
used the questionnaire that was prepared for the main study (containing a translation of the core
questionnaire plus around 40 country-specific items focusing on economic uncertainty and the
consequences of COVID). Several questionnaire items refer to the respondent's partnership
situation. Only the respondents were interviewed, so all couple and household data are based
on their responses. The pilot study employed computer-assisted web interviewing (CAWI).
The pilot study did not utilize a random sample. Rather, we approached respondents from an
online opt-in panel. This is a group of rather experienced respondents - they had completed
(on average) eleven other questionnaires. A group of over 7000 such respondents were invited
to participate in early December 2020. A simple quota sampling procedure (based on age
and gender) was implemented to control the composition of the sample. Since this is a nonprobability
sample, we refrain from using statistical tests. This recruitment strategy was very
efficient and over 1300 questionnaires were completed by early February. Respondents were
offered a financial incentive of CZK 500 for a completed questionnaire.
of May (with gradual easing of restrictions), the second took place from October 5, 2020, until
December 2020, and third closing was announced again in March 2021 and lasted until May 2021.
The total duration of school closures in the Czech Republic was 46 weeks between March 2020 and
June 2021 (when summer holidays begin).
Data collection for both waves occurred at a time when the Czech Republic adopted strict measures
in pandemic prevention. Data of the COVID-19 Stringency Index (see footnote 1; index is
ranging from 0 to 100 with higher values indicating stronger regulations; Hale et al. 2021) show
that in December 2020, the stringency of the measures in the Czech Republic was at about 65
on the index, and in April 2021, it was as high as 82 (one of the highest in the world at that time).
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A short follow-up study to the "Czech GGS COVID pilot study" was conducted in
April 2021 using a 15-minute questionnaire composed partly of replicated questions and
partly of new questions. All pilot respondents were invited to participate in this follow-up
study on April 4 and interviewing was completed by April 19, 2021. A total of 1201
respondents participated in the follow-up. This study only uses data from respondents who
participated in both waves of the survey. The sample is limited to employed respondents who
had a co-resident partner at both waves of interviewing. There were 512 such respondents.
D e p e n d e n t Variables
We use two outcome variables: "partnership satisfaction" and the "frequency of conflicts".
Partnership satisfaction is measured with a single questionnaire item: "How satisfied are you
with your relationship with your partner? On a scale from 0 to 10 where 0 means 'not at all
satisfied' and 10 means 'completely satisfied' and 5 means 'about average", what number
best represents your satisfaction with your relationship?" All respondents with a partner
answered this question.5
The average satisfaction was relatively high (8.34, s.d. = 1.85) at
wave 1 and significantly lower at wave 2 (mean = 7.79, s.d. = 2.07), see Table A l . A full
distribution of responses to this question in both waves is shown in Figure 1.
Partnership conflict scale is based on a battery of questions that begins "Within the
last 12 months, how often did you and your partner have disagreements about...?" While
respondents reported conflicts across seven domains, we only used five of them (household
chores, money, leisure, relationships with friends, relationships with parents and in laws) to
create a scale.6
We used these variables to construct a summary "frequency of conflict" index.
We decided to exclude items concerning children (conflicts about having children and childraising
issues) to maintain childless couples and couples with adult children in the sample).
These two decisions follow practices found in the literature (Berninger et al. 2011; Naderi
and Diabate 2018). Respondents employed a five-point scale for each domain (1- never,
2- seldom, 3- sometimes, 4- frequently, 5- very frequently). Responses were summed and
divided by the number of items. Thus, the resulting summary scale places each respondent
into the 1 to 5 interval, where higher values represent more frequent conflict. The mean was
computed for all respondents who provided a valid response to at least four of the five items.
Figure 2 shows the distribution of values of the "frequency of conflict" scale by survey wave.
For our analysis, only data from respondents with coresident partner were used.
If we examine items in the battery, we observe rather high intercorrelation: exploratory factor
analysis suggests one factor accounting for 49 % of the variance; Cronbach's alpha was 0.73.
Tomáš Zvoníček, Martin Kreidl, Petr Fučík: Partnership Satisfaction and Conflict among...
Independent Variables
Our analysis focuses on two independent variables: an objective measure of economic impact
of COVID-19 on the respondent and a subjectively assessed likelihood of job loss, which we
take as a measure of perceived job insecurity. Both variables were measured in both waves of
the survey. The measurement of economic impact is based on a battery of indicator questions,
in which respondents reported if COVID-19 resulted in the following circumstances:
termination of their own business/entrepreneurial activities, job loss, forced job change,
forced early retirement, or significant income reduction. Responses for each option were
binary (yes/no). Items showed a relatively low occurrence of each event (below 10 per cent),
so we decided to use one summary index measuring the number of impacts that COVID-
19 had on individual respondents. Overall, 88 % of respondents in our analytical sample
reported no negative economic consequences of COVID-19 at the first interview and 83 %
of respondents reported no economic consequences of COVID-19 at the second interview.
While only 2 % of respondents reported two or more impacts at wave 1, this share grew to
3 % at wave 2.
The likelihood of a job loss (a proxy for economic insecurity) was initially measured
on a five-point scale. All (self-)employed respondents were asked: "How likely is it that you
will lose your job in the next 12 months?" Respondents chose from 5 options: 1- very likely,
2- likely, 3- unsure, 4- unlikely, 5- very unlikely. Overall, 70 % of respondents stated that
job loss was unlikely or very unlikely. The next 25 % were not sure about the probability,
and 4.5 % perceived job loss as likely or very likely. These percentages were stable over the
two survey waves of the survey. Summarizing the univariate analysis of both independent
variables, both the perceived direct economic effects and the subjective job insecurity
were relatively rare. This can be due to the gradual nature of the economic consequences
of COVID-19 restrictions and to the various kinds of governmental economic support.
Control Variables - Interaction Effects
Main effects of explanatory variables can be significantly modified by other factors.
Therefore, we also use interaction effects to capture these complexities. Based on the
literature, we use the following modifying variables: gender, education (primary and lower
secondary; upper secondary; tertiary), and the presence of minor children in the household
(a dichotomous variable).
M e t h o d s
Our analysis is based on a combination of simple descriptive and multi-variate methods.
Multi-variate methods from the family of "multi-level" models were employed. We see our
data as hierarchically structured: individual measurements {micro-observations) are nested
within respondents (macro-contexts). We chose to use the fixed-effects version of multilevel
models, which effectively controls the additive effects of all measured and unmeasured
macro-level characteristics (in this case, respondents) on the outcome, thus minimizing the
risk of omitted-variable bias. With this method we can't estimate additive effects of stable
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respondent-level characteristics (such as gender, education, and household composition),
these variables can be utilized in interaction with other (micro-level) explanatory variables,
thus showing whether the effect of - for instance - economic insecurity varies between
genders, parents and non-parents, or across education groups.7
Results
M e a n Values of Conflict a n d Satisfaction Scales A c c o r d i n g to O b j e c t i v e
a n d Subjective COVID-19 Work Impacts
We can see mostly tiny differences if we compare the mean values of the summary index
of conflict and the relationship satisfaction across the main independent and control variables.
These descriptive analyses suggest there is almost no systematic influence of the economic
impacts of COVID-19 during the first wave of the survey. However, a clear pattern emerges
in the second wave when the higher economic impact is associated with a higher frequency
of conflict and lower partnership satisfaction on average. In the case of job uncertainty,
small differences are visible in both waves: the mean score of the partnership satisfaction is
lower, and the frequency of conflict is slightly higher among respondents reporting a higher
likelihood of a job loss. Concerning the control variables, men report somewhat higher
partnership satisfaction, and there is also a gap between families with minor children (higher
frequency of conflict, lower satisfaction) and without them, but this difference is visible only
in the first wave.
74
Given the nature of the data, we refrain from reporting formal statistical tests. We prefer to highlight
the substantive significance of the estimated parameters. We do, however, report standard errors
of estimates as a descriptive tool.
Tomáš Zvoníček, Martin Kreidl, Petr Fučík: Partnership Satisfaction and Conflict among...
Table 1: Descriptive statistics of the dependent variables overall, by survey wave, and across categories
of independent variables. Employed Czech adults living with a co-residential romantic partner. Number
of respondents = 512
Wave 1, mean of
summary index
of conflicts with
partner
Wave 2, mean of
summary index
of conflicts with
partner
Wave 1,
Relationship
Satisfaction
Wave 2,
Relationship
Satisfaction
Mean N
Std.
dev.
Mean N
Std.
dev.
Mean N
Std.
dev.
Mean N
Std.
dev.
Number of
economic
impacts,
truncated*
0 2.01 451 0.66 1.95 426 0.71 8.35 451 1.86 7.88 426 1,98Number of
economic
impacts,
truncated*
1 2.22 52 0.58 2.09 71 0.69 8.23 52 1.79 7.52 71 2,34
Number of
economic
impacts,
truncated* 2 2.04 9 0.49 2.33 15 0.90 8.33 9 1.66 6.73 15 2,99
The
likelihood
of a job
loss*
Very unlikely 1.96 141 0.63 1.78 138 0.63 8.52 141 1.80 8.15 138 1,97
The
likelihood
of a job
loss*
Unlikely 2.04 217 0.68 2.02 219 0.69 8.36 217 1.74 7.75 219 2,07
The
likelihood
of a job
loss* Unsure/likely/
very lik.
2.09 154 0.65 2.11 155 0.79 8.15 154 2.03 7.54 155 2,12
Sex
Women 2.07 238 0.68 2.05 238 0.71 8.21 238 2.04 7.61 238 2,19
Sex
Men 2.00 274 0.64 1.92 274 0.71 8.45 274 1.66 7.96 274 1,95
Education
of
respondent
Lower sec
or less
2.00 76 0.64 1.94 76 0.65 8.59 76 2.06 8.16 76 1,99
Education
of
respondent
Higher sec 2.09 208 0.70 2.00 208 0.76 8.08 208 2.01 7.60 208 2,22
Education
of
respondent
Tertiary 1.99 228 0.62 1.97 228 0.69 8.50 228 1.58 7.85 228 1,95
Minor
child(ren)
in the
household
No kid 1.94 246 0.64 1.98 246 0.73 8.41 246 1.85 7.89 246 2,04Minor
child(ren)
in the
household Has kid 2.12 266 0.66 1.98 266 0.70 8.27 266 1.85 7.70 266 2,10
Total 2,03 512 0.66 1.98 512 0.71 8.34 512 1.85 7.79 512 2.07
W l and W2 data used for the computation within appropriate columns
Multi-Variate, Respondent-Level Fixed-Effects M o d e l s
In this section, we present four sets of models - one set for each combination of a dependent
and an independent variable. Within each set, we begin by presenting a baseline model that
contains the independent variable and a dummy variable for wave. Then, three additional
models are presented that contain interactions of the independent variable with respondentlevel
controls (parenthood, gender, and education).
Table 2 shows the estimated parameters (and respective standard errors) of models
predicting relationship satisfaction on the number of economic impacts of COVID-19 on
the respondent. Model 1 (the baseline) documents that overall, the association between the
dependent and the independent variable is very weak. Model 1 also confirms that the average
relationship satisfaction is high (over 8.8 points on a 0-10 satisfaction scale) and that reported
relationship satisfaction declined by more than a half-point between the first and the second
interview. We can also see that the coefficient on intra-class correlation (rho) is very high
(0.737 in Model 1), indicating a high degree of stability of relationship assessment.
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SOCIÁLNI STUDIA / SOCIAL STUDIES 1 / 2 0 2 3
Table 2: Estimated parameters (and s.e. in parentheses) of selected fixed-effect regressions of relationship
satisfaction on the number of economic impacts of COVTD-19 experienced by the respondent.
Employed Czech adults living with a co-residential romantic partner. Number of respondents = 512,
number of measurement occasions = 1024
Model 1 Model 2 Model3 Model 4
Economic impacts of COVID
-0.005
(0.141)
2nd
wave
-0.547
(0.068)
-0.552
(0.068)
-0.546
(0.068)
-0.546
(0.068)
Interactions
Economic impacts of COVID*has kid
0.432
(0.279)
Economic impacts of COVID*no kid
-0.230
(0.202)
Economic impacts of COVID*female
0.299
(0.212)
Economic impacts of COVID*male
-0.537
(0.281)
Economic impacts of COVID*lower
sec. or less
0.182
(0.313)
Economic impacts of COVID*complete
secondary
-0.204
(0.373)
Economic impacts of COVID*tertiary
-0.277
(0.397)
Constant
8.889
(0.107)
8.346
(0.052)
8.345
(0.052)
8.342
(0.052)
rho 0.737 0.740 0.739 0.736
We observed that the economic impacts of COVID-19 rather strongly interacted with all
respondent-level controls, as indicated by the gray shade in the table (darker shades indicate
stronger association).8
Model 2 shows that, interestingly, relationship satisfaction increases
with the number of economic impacts of COVID-19 among parents, while it decreases
among respondents without children. The increase of relationship satisfaction among parents
is 0.432 points for each unit increase in the economic impacts of COVID-19, while the
decrease among non-parents is -0.23. Similarly, the economic impacts of COVID-19 tend
to increase relationship satisfaction among women (by 0.299 points, see Table 2), while the
impact among men is negative (each additional economic impact of COVID-19 decreases
relationship satisfaction by -0.537 points). Finally, we also see a divergence by the level
of education. Whereas the economic impacts of COVID-19 increase relationship satisfaction
Our assessment of the substantial significance of an interaction is contextual. For the relationship
satisfaction scale, we interpret changes of more than 0.4 points to be significant and more than
0.6 points to be strongly significant. For the number of conflicts scale, the respective thresholds are
0.2 and 0.4.
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Tomáš Zvoníček, Martin Kreidl, Petr Fučík: Partnership Satisfaction and Conflict among...
among the least educated (by 0.182 points for each impact), the effect is negative among
respondents with completed secondary or tertiary education (the effects being -0.204 and
-0.277, respectively).
Table 3 shows the next set of models, which focus on the effects of the economic impacts
of COVID-19 on the number of conflicts between partners. The logic of model building is the
same as in Table 2. We first estimate the baseline model with two predictors only (Model 5)
and we then add interaction terms. Model 5 reveals that associations between the dependent
and the independent variables are weak. Model 6 shows that the effects of economic impacts
of COVID-19 on the number of conflicts does not differ by the presence of children. Model
7, on the other hand, documents a rather strong interaction between respondent's gender
and the economic impacts of COVID-19. While the effect of the economic impacts is
negative among women (i.e. more economic impacts result in fewer partnership conflicts),
we observe the opposite among men (the more men suffer economically, the more frequent
partnership conflicts are reported). Both effects appear to be significant. We see that each
additional economic impact of COVID-19 shifts women, on average, by -0.182 points on the
conflict scale (toward its zero-conflict extreme). In men, the corresponding effect is + 0.213
(see Table 3). Similarly, Model 8 documents how education stratifies the effect of the economic
impacts of COVID-19 on partnership conflicts. Whereas among the less educated, this effect
is zero (or perhaps slightly positive), it is negative among the better educated (i.e. individuals
with at least completed secondary education, see Table 3). This means that it is less common
for economic hardship to translate into partnership conflicts among high school and university
graduates.
Tables 4 and 5 summarize the estimated parameters of FE regression models of relationship
satisfaction and number of conflicts on perceived job insecurity. Overall, these models
show fewer significant interactions than the models reported above. As we see in Model
9 (see Table 4), the main effect of perceived job insecurity on relationship satisfaction
is negligible. We also observe - across all models reported in Table 4 - that relationship
satisfaction tends to decrease significantly over time. For instance, in Model 9, the average
relationship satisfaction declined by -0.547 between the first and the second interview.
Perceived job insecurity does not interact with parenthood status (see Model 10). It does,
however, interact with respondent gender. When women experience a shift toward higher
job insecurity between panel interviews, their relationship satisfaction increases by 0.220
points. Among men, this has the opposite effect and an increase in perceived job insecurity
leads to a worsened relationship satisfaction (see Table 4, Model 11). Model 12 suggests
that the effect of perceived job insecurity varies by level of education. This interaction,
however, does not follow the pattern predicted by any of our hypotheses: the effect of
job insecurity is strong and negative among the individuals with the lowest education and
it is strong and positive among respondents in the middle education category. The effect
is practically zero among individuals with tertiary degrees. Such a complex pattern is hard
to explain in our view.
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SOCIÁLNI STUDIA / SOCIAL STUDIES 1 / 2 0 2 3
Table 3: Estimated parameters (and s.e. in parentheses) of selected fixed-effect regressions of the number
of conflicts with partner on the number of economic impacts of COVTD-19 experienced by the respondent.
Employed Czech adults living with a co-residential romantic partner. Number of respondents = 512,
number of measurement occasions = 1024
Model 5 Model 6 Model 7 Model 8
Economic impacts of COVID
-0.062
(0.052)
2nd
wave
-0.047
(0.025)
-0.047
(0.025)
-0.047
(0.025)
-0.046
(0.025)
Interactions
Economic impacts of COVID*has kid
0.005
(0.103)
Economic impacts of COVID*no kid
-0.064
(0.075)
Economic impacts of COVID*female
-0.182
(0.078)
Economic impacts of COVID*male
0.213
(0.104)
Economic impacts of COVID*lower
sec. or less
0.082
(0.116)
Economic impacts of COVID*complete
secondary
-0.142
(0.138)
Economic impacts of COVID*tertiary
-0.236
(0.147)
Constant
2.087
(0.040)
2.041
(0.019)
2.039
(0.019)
2.040
(0.019)
rho 0.711 0.711 0.714 0.713
Finally, Table 5 displays the estimated parameters of models predicting the number
of conflicts between partners on perceived job insecurity. These models (Models 13 to 16)
revealed no significant effects. Neither the main effects of job insecurity and interview
wave nor any interactions between job insecurity and other variables (parenthood, gender,
education) were significant.
78
Tomáš Zvoníček, Martin Kreidl, Petr Fučík: Partnership Satisfaction and Conflict among...
Table 4: Estimated parameters (and s.e. in parentheses) of selected fixed-effect regressions of relationship
satisfaction on perceived job insecurity. Employed Czech adults living with a co-residential romantic
partner. Number of respondents = 512, number of measurement occasions = 1024
Model 9 Model 10 Model 11 Model 12
Perceived job insecurity
0.0588
(0.095)
2n d
wave
-0.547
(0.068)
-0.551
(0.068)
-0.548
(0.067)
-0.541
(0.068)
Interactions
Perceived job insecurity*has kid
0.092
(0.192)
Perceived job insecurity*no kid
0.011
(0.137)
Perceived job insecurity*female
0.220
(0.131)
Perceived job insecurity*male
-0.337
(0.190)
Perceived job insecurity*lowersec.
or less
-0.139
(0.274)
Perceived job insecurity*complete
secondary
0.368
(0.310)
Perceived job insecurity*tertiary
0.085
(0.309)
Constant
8.770
(0.220)
8.221
(0.199)
8.263
(0.199)
8.237
(0.200)
rho 0.738 0.739 0.750 0.751
Conclusion
As we have seen and discussed, the COVID-19 pandemic has been a significant factor
influencing everyday family life. The pandemic affected interactions in families and couples
in many ways. Some of the most frequently discussed effects resulted from closed schools,
widespread working from home, closed dining establishments, restricted contacts with peers,
and reduced possibilities of contact within the wider family. In our analysis, we studied
how the labor market situation impacted subjectively evaluated partnership satisfaction and
reported frequency of conflict between partners. Our investigation employed two different
measures of respondents' labor market experience during COVID-19: one summarizing the
"objective" experience (job loss, lower wage, involuntary retirement, etc.) and the other
relying on respondents' subjective assessments of employment insecurity.
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SOCIÁLNI STUDIA / SOCIAL STUDIES 1 / 2 0 2 3
Table 5: Estimated parameters (and s.e. in parentheses) of selected fixed-effect regressions of the number
of conflicts with partner on perceived job insecurity. Employed Czech adults living with a co-residential
romantic partner. Number of respondents = 512, number of measurement occasions = 1024
Model 13 Model 14 Model 15 Model 16
Perceived job insecurity
-0.006
(0.035)
2nd
wave
-0.051
(0.025)
-0.051
(0.025)
-0.050
(0.025)
-0.050
(0.025)
Interactions
Perceived job insecurity*has kid
.021
(0.071)
Perceived job insecurity*no kid
-.016
(0.050)
Perceived job insecurity*female
-0.017
(0.049)
Perceived job insecurity*male
.024
(0.071)
Perceived job insecurity*lower sec.
or less
-0.063
(0.102)
Perceived job insecurity*complete
secondary
0.063
(0.115)
Perceived job insecurity*tertiary
0.067
(0.115)
Constant
2.093
(0.081)
2.042
(0.073)
2.040
(0.074)
2.048
(0.074)
rho 0.709 0.708 .710 0.710
Starting from the stress and spillover theories, we hypothesized that the negative labor
market experience would directly and causally translate into more frequent conflicts in
partnership and lower partnership satisfaction. Summarizing the results from the "Czech
GGS COVID pilot study", which employed a panel design and interviewed respondents twice
(in December 2020 and April 2021), the evidence for this apparently reasonable hypothesis
is weak. Fixed-effect (i.e. within-person change models) models predicting change in the
frequency of conflict as well as the models predicting change in subjective partnership
satisfaction did not show any significant effects of the economic impacts of COVID-19 or the
subjective job insecurity.
Interestingly, subjective relationship satisfaction declined significantly between the two
waves of the survey, but this was not the case for the frequency of conflicts. This means
that while the subjective assessment of the relationship deteriorated, the reported frequency
of conflicts remained unchanged. This is probably a result of the fact that the pandemic
worsened so many aspects of personal life, including work-family balance, contact with
extended family, friends, and work colleagues, that the dissatisfaction spilled over to the
evaluation of other spheres (such as the couple relationship) even though these did not
themselves deteriorate. It is striking that this happened without direct influence from the
80
Tomáš Zvoníček, Martin Kreidl, Petr Fučík: Partnership Satisfaction and Conflict among...
labor market experience. This finding partially echoes results from several earlier studies of
partnerships during the COVID-19 pandemic that also reported a generally negative trend
in partnership satisfaction (Móhring et al. 2021; Schmid et al. 2021; Balzarini et al. 2020;
Vigl et al. 2021). In the context of the spillover theory, these results suggest that when the
effects of a pandemic situation on partnership satisfaction emerge, the path is more direct and
probably does not lead primarily through personal labor market experiences, but the overall
lockdown situation plays an important role. Various forms of stress taken all together can
apparently magnify concerns about the long-term viability of the relationship and therefore
influence an individual's perceptions that their relationship is in trouble (Ogan et al. 2021).
We chose to use a within-person change model (i.e. a respondent-level fixed-effect
regression model) for its lower susceptibility to omitted-variable bias. These models give
robust causal evidence, but do not, by their very nature, make it possible to estimate the
additive effects of respondent-level variables, which are, however, controlled in this design
(Kalvas et al. 2009). Fixed-effect models do enable the estimation of interactions between
respondent-level variables and the main explanatory variables. These interactions show how
respondent characteristics such as gender, education, and the presence of minor children
in the household modify the effects of the labor market experience. These models reveal
significant interactions. Especially in the case of gender, the overall zero-association pattern
is produced by two offsetting effects of opposing natures. While we see significant worsening
of partnership satisfaction and rising conflicts for men experiencing either the economic
impact of COVID-19 or job insecurity, the association is exactly the opposite for women,
whose partnership satisfaction rises and whose conflicts are less frequent when their labor
market experience deteriorates. This pattern was consistently present in the analysis of all
four combinations of the dependent and independent variables and is consistent with a prepandemic
study by Blom et al. (2020) in the Dutch population, which also rather surprisingly
found a negative impact of job insecurity on partnership satisfaction in men only.
Opposite effects in men and women can be explained by several mechanisms stemming
from the differentiated gender roles that persist in Czech society (Hamplová et al. 2019;
Hašková and Klenner 2010) despite significant recent shifts in prevailing norms and attitudes
(Hubatková and Doseděl 2020; Kreidl 2010). First, the economic impacts of COVID-19 on
women can partially free their capacity for the extraordinary amount of unpaid work that
fell to the families due to the lockdown of institutional providers of childcare, education,
alimentation, and other services. On the contrary, in the case of men, any erosion of their
symbolic role as breadwinners could deteriorate the family climate. Moreover, a drop in male
income usually has more significant consequences for the family budget due to the gender pay
gap and relatively long parental leave in the Czech Republic (Bičáková and Kalíšková 2019).
These results have important implications for refining the spillover and family stress
theories as it is clear that the mechanisms of stress transmission are likely to be fundamentally
different for men and women. It should be noted that the Czech Republic is one of the lowest
rated countries in the E U according to the Gender Equality Index (European Institute for
Gender Equality 2021). On the other hand, the fact that a similar effect was found (albeit
before the pandemic) in the Netherlands, which in contrast has almost the highest Gender
Equality Index score (European Institute for Gender Equality 2021), suggests that gender
81
SOCIÁLNI STUDIA / SOCIAL STUDIES 1 / 2 0 2 3
inequality may not be the sole cause or is more persistent than expected. This may be the
subject of further research.
The persistent gendered division of childcare would also be a probable explanation
for the similar pattern of the flipping effects of negative labor market experience between
parents and non-parents. Couples with small child(ren) tended to cope with adverse economic
conditions better; in fact, they reported higher partnership satisfaction in response to economic
pressure. For non-parents, the impact was strong and negative, i.e. if they did not do that well
economically (or if they perceived their jobs as insecure), their partnership deteriorated.
Our results suggest that education played only a limited mediating role. We found
that the effect of the economic impact of COVID-19 on partnership was stratified by the
respondents' educational attainment. Among the better educated, the frequency of conflicts
rises and partnership satisfaction deteriorates with stronger economic impacts of COVID-
19. This contrasts with a positive or zero effect for the less educated. This interaction goes
against the general expectation of the stress-absorbing function of higher social status,
but more inquiry would be needed to prove or falsify this tentative conclusion based on
a relatively small sample.
Several factors limit our analysis. First, while we are interested in the quality
of partnership, this central concept is measured by a report from only one spouse. Therefore,
our results can be understood as measuring individual associations only (personally
experienced COVID-19 impacts vs. personally perceived partnership quality and frequency
of conflict), which is a somehow unnatural setting, but the data available did not allow
for a more complex design. Multi-actor surveys making it possible to compare and merge
the data from both partners and create a dyadic perspective are strongly needed for this area
of research (Blom et al. 2020). Second, our measurement instrument asked respondents to
report economic changes resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. The questionnaire left it
up to the respondents to assess the cause of any change in employment and/or income. This
means that some of the job losses or wage drops could be the result of other factors falsely
attributed to the COVID-19 and vice versa; there can be personal COVID-19 economic
impacts that the respondent does not associate with the pandemic. For our purposes,
the most important information is the experience of economic impact that took place during
the pandemic, regardless of the cause mentioned in the survey question.
In general, our results showed that the immediate effects of economic hardship during
the pandemic were not as strong and uniform as we expected. Many families apparently
had the resources to overcome the economic impacts of COVID-19 in terms of maintaining
the subjective relationship quality and curbing the level of conflict between the spouses.
The most important conclusion worth further investigation is the gendered nature of these
mechanisms. There are contradictory, gender-specific associations hidden under the weak
total effects. This suggests that the perception of family life could be in a very different
relation to the economic circumstances for men and women. Future inquiries into this
pattern could be beneficial not only for revealing the complex nature of COVID-19 impacts
but also for general research on the connection between economic settings and partnership
satisfaction and instability.
82
Tomáš Zvoníček, Martin Kreidl, Petr Fučík: Partnership Satisfaction and Conflict among.
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Authors
Tomáš Zvoníček is a PhD student in sociology with a focus on population studies
at the Faculty of Social Studies of Masaryk University. He is a member of the research team
of the Generations and Gender Programme in the Czech Republic.
Contact: 421295@mail.muni.cz
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Tomáš Zvoníček, Martin Kreidl, Petr Fučík: Partnership Satisfaction and Conflict among...
Martin Kreidl is professor of sociology at Masaryk University. He is a social demographer
studying family from a social stratification perspective typically taking a comparative
approach and using survey data. He is a country coordinator of the Generations and Gender
programme in the Czech Republic.
Contact: kreidlm@fss.muni.cz
Petr Fučík is an assistant professor in the Department of Sociology, Faculty of Social studies,
Masaryk University in the Czech Republic. His research focuses on post-divorce adaptation
processes in connection to social reproduction, stratification, and gender topics.
Contact: fucik@fss.muni.cz
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