Beyond Employment Status: A Psychosocial Framework for Understanding Well-Being among Married Women

Women’s well-being is often studied by comparing working and non-working married women. However,employment status alone does not capture the complexity of women’s psychological and family experiences.This conceptual paper proposes a psychosocial framework integrating emotional resilience, maritaladjustment, social support, autonomy, role experiences and life satisfaction. Employment may provideincome, social interaction and opportunities for personal development, but may also increase work–familydemands. Similarly, homemaking and unpaid family work may provide meaning and family belonging,while sometimes limiting independent income or personal choice. The issue is particularly relevant toBihar, where women’s experiences vary by rural–urban setting, education, family structure, socioeconomicconditions and employment opportunities. PLFS 2023–24 reported female and male labour forceparticipation rates of 10.2% and 47.2%, respectively, in Bihar under usual principal status among personsof all ages. NFHS-5 reported that 86.5% of currently married women aged 15–49 participated alone orjointly in three specified household decisions. These indicators reflect different aspects of women’s socialand economic lives. The paper therefore proposes that women’s well-being should be understood throughthe interaction of personal resources, marital relationships, family environment, role demands andopportunities for agency. The proposed framework provides a basis for future empirical research amongmarried women in Bihar and other Indian contexts.