Assessment of Work-Life Balance Challenges Among Working Mothers in Abuja, Federal Capital Territory

Working mothers in Nigeria's urban centres face significant work-life balance challenges with documented effects on psychological wellbeing, marital satisfaction, and parenting quality, and understanding these challenges in Abuja's professional environment informs counselling support design. This study assessed work-life balance challenges among working mothers in Abuja Municipal Area Council, Federal Capital Territory. A descriptive survey was conducted among 240 employed mothers with at least one child under 12 years, drawn from five federal government ministries using purposive sampling. The Work-Life Balance Scale and a researcher-developed challenge inventory were administered. Descriptive statistics and multiple regression were applied. Results revealed that 72.5 percent of respondents experienced moderate to severe work-life imbalance. The primary challenges identified were inadequate childcare provisions (81.7 percent), long commuting hours (74.2 percent), inflexible work schedules (68.3 percent), and spousal non-support with domestic responsibilities (63.3 percent). Work-life imbalance was significantly negatively associated with psychological wellbeing (beta = -0.46, p < 0.001) and marital satisfaction (beta = -0.39, p < 0.001). Mothers in lower salary grades reported greater imbalance. Access to any counselling or employee assistance programme was available to only 19.2 percent. The study recommends workplace counselling programmes, employer policy advocacy for flexible work arrangements, couple counselling support, and childcare infrastructure development in Abuja government institutions. Keywords: work-life balance, working mothers, psychological wellbeing, Abuja, FCT