Entrepreneurship and Work-Life Balance

Abstract

Work-life balance of entrepreneurs is a topic of high interest in both theory and practice. However, empirical findings are rare and often contradictory. This study investigates the work-life balance of different groups of self-employed in comparison to wage-employed individuals using a large European dataset. We find that work-life balance is lower for all types of self-employed in comparison to wage-employed individuals. In particular, self-employed individuals with employees have the lowest work-life balance. Our results have important implications for entrepreneurship research.

Keywords: Work-Life Balance, Working Time Quality, Entrepreneurship, European Working Conditions Survey

JEL Classification: J22, J81, L26, M50, O52