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In this chapter, we review empirical research evidence regarding coping and work–family conflict. Limitations and gaps associated with the existing literature are discussed. Of special note is the finding that there is little systematic research that examines the process of coping with work–family conflict. Building on the general stress and coping literature, we present a theoretical model that is specifically focused on the process of coping with work–family conflict, and highlight presumed personal and situational antecedents. Finally, the chapter concludes with an agenda for future research.

Several authors have tried to explain the variation across firms in the implementation of work‐family programmes in terms of the employment strategy of these firms and institutional pressures. But most of these studies have been done in the US context. This study replicates these studies in Spain, which has a very different legal, cultural, and labour market context and where the diffusion of work‐family programmes has only recently started. Using data from a sample of 131 Spanish, mostly private firms, tests five hypotheses that may explain the adoption of family‐friendly human resources management policies. Finds that even in this particular context both the employment strategy and some institutional pressures play an important role. The size of the firm, the percentage of female employees, the presence of a high‐commitment work system and the tightness of the labour market are associated with the implementation of a work/family programme. With the increasing participation of female workers and the ageing of the population expects that work/family programmes will continue to diffuse in Spain.

This study contributes to the literature on workaholism by testing the Spence and Robbins workaholic triad; 5,853 full time workers participated in a national survey on working hours, covering a broad range of economic sectors and employment categories. Respondents were grouped eight clusters. Results show a strong similarity with those of other studies about the validity of the Spence and Robbins' typology. The same basic dimensions and the same types are identified, and similar relationships with extra‐work activities are found. In addition, a wide range of biographical, motivational and organizational data are included. One new type of workaholic was identified: the reluctant hard worker reports relatively long working hours, at a relatively low hierarchical level, with a strong perception of external pressure and a low perception of growth culture and a strong intention to leave the organization.

Tammy D. Allen, Ph.D., is a professor of psychology at the University of South Florida. She received her Ph.D. in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from the University of Tennessee. Her research interests include work and family issues, occupational health psychology, mentoring relationships, career development, and organizational citizenship behavior. Her research has been published in journals such as Journal of Applied Psychology, Personnel Psychology, Journal of Management, and Journal of Vocational Behavior. She is currently associate editor for Journal of Occupational Health Psychology and serves on the editorial boards of Journal of Applied Psychology, Personnel Psychology, Human Performance, and Journal of Vocational Behavior.

Occupational stress and the role of the family and other non-work activities continue to be an important area of research for organizational scientists. In our sixth volume of Research in Occupational Stress and Well Being, we offer seven intriguing chapters that examine several key issues in work and non-work stress research. The theme for this volume is exploring the work and non-work interface.

The construct of cultural intelligence has recently been introduced to the management literature as an individual difference that may predict effectiveness and a variety of interpersonal behavior in the global business environment. This construct has enormous potential in helping to explain effectiveness in cross-cultural interactions. However, progress has been limited by the adequacy of existing measures. In this chapter, we describe the development and preliminary validation of a web-based assessment of cultural intelligence based on our conceptualization of cultural intelligence.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relations between supervisor support (SS), work-life balance (WLB), job attitudes and performance of employees in the Australian financial sector. More specifically, the study explore the impact of SS, WLB and job attitudes on employees’ job performance (JP).

Using an online panel, the data comprised 305 employees working in financial organisations to test a model with structural equation modelling. A list of survey items was tested that replicated extensively in work-life research in the past.

The research contributed to the existing literature by identifying a significant mechanism through which SS was linked to WLB that influenced job satisfaction, life satisfaction and organisational commitment and JP given the paucity of such research in the Australian financial sector.

The study would guide employers, employees and managers involved in the financial sector to implement policies which aim to augment JP and promote balance between work, home and life.

Interpersonal trust between supervisors and subordinates plays an important role in management. The impact of trust from management is through employees’ perception and more specifically their perception of being trusted, termed feeling trusted or felt trust. Politics is associated with the level of trust of organizational members. So far, little is known how employees respond to feeling trusted with regard to political behaviour resulting in employee outcomes. The paper aims to discuss this issue.

The paper develops a conceptual model to examine the double-edged sword effect of political behaviour on employee outcomes.

The authors designed a two-wave survey to test the model. The analysis of 286 supervisor–employee dyads found that feeling trusted is associated with supervisor-rated organization citizenship behaviour (OCB) and overload reported by employees. Furthermore, political behaviour partially mediates the relationship between feeling trusted and supervisor-rated OCB, which may be desired by both the supervisors and employees. It also mediates the relationship between feeling trusted and employee perceived overload, which is undesired by employees.

The current research aims to fill in the gap and answer this question: what is the role of political behaviour in the relationship between feeling trusted and employee outcomes? Guided by an “antecedents–behaviours–consequences” framework (Ferris et al., 1989), the paper develops a conceptual model to examine how feeling trusted directly and indirectly influences employee outcomes, with the latter being mediated by political behaviour.