*2.3. Peer Workers' Quiet Quitting Behaviors and Support for Childcare*

The United States has a reputation for its lack of "family-friendly and supportive policies at work, which impact low-income families most significantly, as they face greater challenges, have the least flexibility, and their hours are often limited so they do not have to be provided benefits by the company" [49]. Most parents only have access to sick days or paid time off (PTO), and supervisors can deny these benefits, as they need to be requested ahead of time [49]. Multiple studies have shown that benefits, such as paid maternity leave and flexible work policies, positively impact mothers' mental health and thus have been popular topics of discussion during the pandemic [50]. A more recent study conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic reported that the three most helpful policies offered to working mothers were additional time off, flexible work scheduling, and flexible work location [50]. Furthermore, a greater number of childcare policies was associated with decreased depression symptoms upon returning to work, and these policies reduced the number of employee resignations [50].

Supervisor support and peer support were also found to have a positive influence on an employee's attitude at work [51]. Support from supervisors and coworkers may take one of three forms: material support, informational support, and emotional support [51]. Employees who understand their role in the workplace are less likely to suffer from dissatisfaction or job tension, which may reduce quiet quitting behaviors, especially in the younger generation who are working in online and hybrid positions. Work engagement and job satisfaction are positively affected by supervisory support [51], which supports the idea that quiet quitting is influenced by employees' feelings of lack of clarity around their jobs, lack of supervisory support, and lack of empathy [6].

A social network support study demonstrated that when people have similar positions at their place of work, they also have similar ways of exhibiting behavior [52]. This suggests that employee behaviors at work can be influenced by their coworkers even if they do not work with them directly [52]. This is important when considering the implications of quiet quitting behaviors because it may mean that if a coworker quiet quits, then another employee may be more likely to exhibit quiet quitting behaviors as well. Additionally, coworker support and coworker exchange are positively associated with "psychological flourishing", which makes individuals more active and more productive [53]. Additionally, it has been found that coworker support and coworker exchanges more strongly impact the performance of minorities [53]. This may mean that those who are minorities, especially those in low-income workplaces that may not offer benefits, may be more likely to quiet quit if they observe their coworkers quiet quitting.

**Hypothesis 7.** *Peer workers' quiet quitting behaviors will significantly influence working mothers' likelihood of adopting quiet quitting behaviors at work.*

**Hypothesis 8.** *Supervisors' support for childcare will significantly reduce working mothers' likelihood of adopting quiet quitting behaviors at work.*
