Michael P. O’Driscoll, Paula Brough and Thomas J. Kalliath
A survey of employed workers was conducted at two time periods to assess relationships between work‐family conflict, well‐being, and job and family satisfaction, along with the…
Abstract
A survey of employed workers was conducted at two time periods to assess relationships between work‐family conflict, well‐being, and job and family satisfaction, along with the role of social support from work colleagues and family members. Levels of work‐to‐family interference (WFI) were found to be uniformly higher than family‐to‐work interference (FWI). However, at each time period FWI showed more consistent negative relationships with well‐being and satisfaction, indicating that family‐to‐work interference may have a greater bearing on employees’ affective reactions. There were few cross‐time relationships between work‐family conflict and these reactions, which suggests that the association of work‐family conflict with well‐being and satisfaction may be time‐dependent. Although there was some evidence that social support from work colleagues moderated the relationship of WFI with psychological strain and family satisfaction, family support did not display a consistent moderator influence. Instead, both forms of support tended to exhibit direct (rather than moderator) relationships with the outcome variables. Implications of the findings for research and interventions are discussed.
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Allen C. Bluedorn, Thomas J. Kalliath, Michael J Strube and Gregg D. Martin
The ten‐item Inventory of Polychronic Values (IPV), a psychometric measure of polychronicity (the extent to which people in a culture prefer to be engaged in two or more tasks or…
Abstract
The ten‐item Inventory of Polychronic Values (IPV), a psychometric measure of polychronicity (the extent to which people in a culture prefer to be engaged in two or more tasks or events simultaneously and believe their preference is the best way to do things), was developed using data from 11 samples (N = 2,190) collected from bank employees, undergraduate students, hospital personnel, dentists and their staffs, and state agency managers. Principal components, alpha, correlation, and confirmatory factor analyses supported the IPV in its internal consistency, test‐retest reliability, content adequacy, construct validity (both discriminant and convergent), and nomological validity.
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Parveen Kalliath, Thomas Kalliath, Xi Wen Chan and Christopher Chan
Drawing on the conservation of resources theory and social exchange theory, this study aims to examine the underlying relationships linking work-to-family enrichment (WFE) and…
Abstract
Purpose
Drawing on the conservation of resources theory and social exchange theory, this study aims to examine the underlying relationships linking work-to-family enrichment (WFE) and family-to-work enrichment (FWE) to perceived supervisor support and ultimately, job satisfaction among social workers.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from members of a social work professional body (n = 439) through an internet-based questionnaire and analysed using confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling.
Findings
Perceived supervisor support mediated the relationships between work–family enrichment (specifically, WFE-Development, WFE-Affect and FWE-Efficiency) and job satisfaction.
Research limitations/implications
Social workers who worked in a positive work environment that uplifts their moods and attitudes (WFE-Affect), have access to intellectual and personal development (WFE-Development) and felt supported by their supervisors reported higher levels of job satisfaction. Those who possessed enrichment resources were found to be more efficient (FWE-Efficiency) also perceived their supervisors to be supportive and experienced higher job satisfaction. Future studies should consider other professional groups and incorporate a longitudinal design.
Practical implications
Promoting work–family enrichment among social workers can contribute to positive work outcomes such as perceived supervisor support and job satisfaction. HR practitioners, supervisors and organisations can promote work–family enrichment among social workers through introduction of family-friendly policies (e.g. flexitime, compressed workweek schedules) and providing a supportive work–family friendly environment for social workers.
Originality/value
Although several work–family studies have linked work–family enrichment to job satisfaction, the present study shows how each dimension of WFE and FWE affects social workers' job satisfaction.
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Kim-Lim Tan, Adriel K.S. Sim and Thomas Donohue
The recent trends of work and family issues have prompted a proliferation of research in the work-family study; however, evidence from the hospitality industry is limited. This…
Abstract
Purpose
The recent trends of work and family issues have prompted a proliferation of research in the work-family study; however, evidence from the hospitality industry is limited. This paper aims to examine the relationships between the work-family interface on job satisfaction (JS) and family satisfaction (FS). Additionally, the authors have adopted person-centered perspectives to determine if gender affects the magnitude of these relationships.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from 295 hospitality employees, and the hypotheses were tested using the partial least squares method of structural equation modeling. Other than assessing the path model’s explanatory power, the authors examined the model’s predictive power using PLSpredict to predict new cases.
Findings
The results supported the originating domain view where the domain in which work-family enrichment (WFE) or conflict originates would have the immediate effect. Simultaneously, the authors found empirical evidence demonstrating the complimentary transfer of resources from the family domain to the work domain, enriching an individual’s satisfaction level. Finally, multigroup analysis reveals that women displayed higher job dissatisfaction than men when facing work-family conflict.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first study that allows a better understanding of the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on employees’ work-family dynamics. This is the first study relating WFE and conflict to matching-domain satisfaction in one model. By examining these constructs’ simultaneous pathways, the authors extend the body of knowledge by contrasting the source attribution perspective with the cross-domain theory of enrichment and conflict. Consequentially, the authors answer Premchandran and Priyadarshi’s (2020) call to examine work-family dynamics in different cultures on different genders.
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Xi Wen Chan, Thomas Kalliath, Paula Brough, Michael O’Driscoll, Oi-Ling Siu and Carolyn Timms
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the mediating roles of work and family demands and work-life balance on the relationship between self-efficacy (to regulate work and…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the mediating roles of work and family demands and work-life balance on the relationship between self-efficacy (to regulate work and life) and work engagement. Specifically, it seeks to explain how self-efficacy influences employees’ thought patterns and emotional reactions, which in turn enable them to cope with work and family demands, and ultimately achieve work-life balance and work engagement.
Design/methodology/approach
Structural equation modelling (SEM) of survey data obtained from a heterogeneous sample of 1,010 Australian employees is used to test the hypothesised chain mediation model.
Findings
The SEM results support the hypothesised model. Self-efficacy was significantly and negatively related to work and family demands, which in turn were negatively associated with work-life balance. Work-life balance, in turn, enabled employees to be engaged in their work.
Research limitations/implications
The findings support the key tenets of social cognitive theory and conservation of resources (COR) theory and demonstrate how self-efficacy can lead to work-life balance and engagement despite the presence of role demands. Study limitations (e.g. cross-sectional research design) and future research directions are discussed.
Originality/value
This study incorporates COR theory with social cognitive theory to improve understanding of how self-efficacy enhances work-life balance and work engagement through a self-fulfilling cycle in which employees achieve what they believe they can accomplish, and in the process, build other skills and personal resources to manage work and family challenges.
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Ellen Ernst Kossek, Thomas Kalliath and Parveen Kalliath
The purpose of this expert commentary is to provide an overview of current scholarship on changes occurring in the work environment and its impact on employee wellbeing. The…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this expert commentary is to provide an overview of current scholarship on changes occurring in the work environment and its impact on employee wellbeing. The commentary touches on frontier issues such as measurement of healthy work environment, positive and negative changes in work environment influencing employee wellbeing, link between employee productivity and wellbeing, challenges in converting theory into practice, sustainable organizational behavior, workplace wellness, and several other issues germane to the special issue.
Design/methodology/approach
The expert commentary explicates the current state of scholarship in relation to the theme of the special issue. The design of the expert commentary, a scholarly conversation between the Guest Editors and University Distinguished Professor Ellen Ernst Kossek, provides an easy to access summary of the current knowledge in the area. This format is intended to inform readers of IJM and to stimulate further scholarship in the area.
Findings
The expert commentary provides a gist of key findings in the extant area of research, serving to inform readers about what we know, do not know, and fruitful areas for further enquiry.
Originality/value
It provides an overview of current knowledge in the area.
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Thomas Kalliath and Parveen Kalliath
The purpose of this overview is to provide a brief introduction to the theme of the special issue, the expert commentary, and six papers included in the special issue. The authors…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this overview is to provide a brief introduction to the theme of the special issue, the expert commentary, and six papers included in the special issue. The authors conclude by articulating four avenues of future research that are likely to contribute significantly towards building work‐environments in which employees and organizations can flourish.
Design/methodology/approach
The International Journal of Manpower's usual double blind review process was used to select the six papers from various parts of the world including Estonia, USA, Australia, Brazil, and Israel that focus on important aspects of the changing work environment and its influence on employee wellbeing. The papers represent a wide variety of research designs, methodologies, and analytic strategies used to investigate the influence of changing work environment on employee wellbeing. An expert commentary provides an overview of current scholarship on changes occurring in the work environment and its impact on employee wellbeing.
Findings
The findings of the studies included in this special issue provide insights into six specific work‐environmental issues influencing employee wellbeing, including workplace bullying; inter‐organizational networks; professional contractor well‐being; inter‐generational differences; commitment and intention to leave; and work‐engagement.
Practical implications
Each article includes practical implications with regard to promotion of employee wellbeing.
Originality/value
Taken as a collective, the six papers in this special issue highlight frontier issues in the relationship between changing work environment and employee wellbeing. The expert commentary provides an easy to access summary of the current scholarship in the area and specifies fruitful areas for future research.
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Xi Wen Chan, Thomas Kalliath and David Cheng
Research has largely shown that supervisors' negative emotions lead to subordinates' negative emotions and detrimental work outcomes, but recent studies are showing that…
Abstract
Purpose
Research has largely shown that supervisors' negative emotions lead to subordinates' negative emotions and detrimental work outcomes, but recent studies are showing that supervisor negative emotions may yield both negative and positive subordinate behaviours. Drawing on the work–home resources model, this research sought to unpack the interpersonal, cross-domain effects of supervisor negative emotions on subordinate cognitive work engagement and family undermining through subordinate perceived leader effectiveness and self-efficacy to manage work and life.
Design/methodology/approach
To test the relationships, confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling were conducted on time-lagged dyadic data collected from 372 supervisor–subordinate pairs.
Findings
Results revealed that supervisor negative emotions led to higher levels of subordinate cognitive work engagement and family undermining.
Research limitations/implications
Supervisor negative emotions had unintended consequences on subordinates' work and family outcomes – they enhanced subordinates' cognitive work engagement (positive work outcome) but also increased subordinates' family undermining (negative family outcome). Future studies could benefit from a diary study with a within-subject design since emotions are known to fluctuate in a day.
Practical implications
This research provides supervisors with insights about the consequences of their negative emotions on their subordinates, calls upon organisations to provide cognitive regulation training, and encourages subordinates to develop self-efficacy in managing their work and life.
Originality/value
This study is among the first to incorporate self-efficacy to manage work and life as a personal resource and subordinate family undermining as an outcome of supervisor negative emotions, which enhances understanding of the resource allocation and loss processes between supervisors and subordinates.
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Johnna Capitano, Kristie L. McAlpine and Jeffrey H. Greenhaus
A core concept of work–home interface research is boundary permeability – the frequency with which elements from one domain cross, or permeate, the boundary of another domain…
Abstract
A core concept of work–home interface research is boundary permeability – the frequency with which elements from one domain cross, or permeate, the boundary of another domain. Yet, there remains ambiguity as to what these elements are and how these permeations impact important outcomes such as role satisfaction and role performance. The authors introduce a multidimensional perspective of work–home boundary permeability, identifying five forms of boundary permeation: task, psychological, role referencing, object, and people. Furthermore, based on the notion that employee control over boundary permeability behavior is the key to achieving role satisfaction and role performance, the authors examine how organizations’ HR practices, leadership, and norms impact employee control over boundary permeability in the work and home domains. The authors conclude with an agenda for future research.