Lieke L. ten Brummelhuis

A Resource Perspective on the Work-Home Interface: The Work-Home Resources Model.

The objective of this article is to provide a theoretical framework explaining positive and negative work-home processes integrally. Using insights from conservation of resources theory, we explain how personal resources (e.g., time, energy, and mood) link demanding and resourceful aspects of one domain to outcomes in the other domain. The resulting work-home resources (W-HR) model describes work-home conflict as a process whereby demands in one domain deplete personal resources and impede accomplishments in the other domain. Enrichment is described as a process of resource accumulation: Work and home resources increase personal resources. Those personal resources, in turn, can be utilized to improve home and work outcomes. Moreover, our resource approach to the work-home interface allows us to address two other issues that have thus far lacked a solid theoretical foundation. The W-HR model also explains how conditional factors such as personality and culture may influence the occurrence of work-home conflict and enrichment. Furthermore, the model allows us to examine how work-home conflict and enrichment develop over time. Finally, the model provides useful insights for other psychology subdisciplines, such as gender studies and developmental psychology.

Staying engaged during the week: the effect of off-job activities on next day work engagement.

Although studies on employee recovery accumulate at a stunning pace, the commonly used theory (Effort-Recovery model) that explains how recovery occurs has not been explicitly tested. We aimed to unravel the recovery process by examining whether off-job activities enhance next morning vigor to the extent that they enable employees to relax and detach from work. In addition, we investigated whether adequate recovery also helps employees to work with more enthusiasm and vigor on the next workday. On five consecutive days, a total of 74 employees (356 data points) reported the hours they spent on various off-job activities, their feelings of psychological detachment, and feelings of relaxation before going to sleep. Feelings of vigor were reported on the next morning, and day-levels of work engagement were reported after work. As predicted, leisure activities (social, low-effort, and physical activities) increased next morning vigor through enhanced psychological detachment and relaxation. High-duty off-job activities (work and household tasks) reduced vigor because these activities diminished psychological detachment and relaxation. Moreover, off-job activities significantly affected next day work engagement. Our results support the assumption that recovery occurs when employees engage in off-job activities that allow for relaxation and psychological detachment. The findings also underscore the significance of recovery after work: Adequate recovery not only enhances vigor in the morning, but also helps employees to stay engaged during the next workday.

New Ways of Working: Impact on Working Conditions, Work–Family Balance, and Well-Being

Organizations have started to redesign their approach to work by integrating technological innovations in their daily practices. Central to this new approach is that employees are asked to organize their work flexibly. Employees are expected to decide for themselves when they work, where they work, and by which communication tool/medium they work. Such a flexible work design, also referred to as “new ways of working” (NWW), has been applauded thus far, as it would lead to more efficient and cost-effective work processes. However, little is known about how NWW influence employees and their families. This chapter will focus on the advantages and disadvantages of NWW and on the question whether NWW help employees to find a better balance between work and nonwork roles. Insight into the possible pitfalls and opportunities of NWW may help employees to use NWW in such a way that they enable them to optimally combine their work and nonwork responsibilities.

Crossover of distress due to work and family demands in dual-earner couples: a dyadic analysis.

Abstract Distress resulting from work and family overload is likely to be interdependent between partners, as both men and women increasingly participate in work and family tasks. We attempted to explain distress of both partners by looking at their work and family demands and the resulting time and energy deficits experienced by each partner. Furthermore, we investigated how time deficit, energy deficit and distress due to such demands crossover between partners. The study, which used a precise measurement of family demands, was based on a sample of both partners from 828 dual-earner couples in The Netherlands. The results showed that for both partners work and family demands increase time deficit and energy deficit. Energy deficit due to heavy demands resulted in more feelings of distress, whereas time deficit did not contribute significantly to distress. We found different patterns of crossover between male and female partners. Feelings of time deficit and energy deficit crossed over from the man to the woman, whereas feelings of distress crossed over from the woman to the man. These results indicate that the demands on each partner contribute to their own distress, as well as to their partners distress, either through the crossover of energy deficit or through the crossover of distress

Collegiality under pressure: The effects of family demands and flexible work arrangements in the Netherlands

Collegial relationships at work have become more important now that organizations increasingly use team-based work processes. Collegiality is also facing new challenges, however: more employees are meeting heavy demands beyond the workplace and making more frequent use of flexible work arrangements. This study seeks to explain the effect of employees’ family demands on collegiality and evaluates whether the use of flexible work arrangements improves or impedes collegial behaviour. Moreover, we aim to investigate collegial behaviour as an exchange process between co-workers, and therefore also take family demands and the use of flexible work arrangements by co-workers into account as predictors of employee collegiality. Based on a sample of 1114 employees from 30 organizations, the results show that when used by the employee and co-workers, flexitime decreases collegiality. Collegiality is decreased when the employee has young children, but increased when co-workers have older children. The implications of these findings for HR practices are discussed.

Managing Family Demands in Teams The Role of Social Support at Work

A majority of today’s workforce juggles work and family roles, whereby family life often interferes with work. Thus far, not much is known about work–family interference at the team level. This study explores how team members’ family demands influence team processes (taskwork and teamwork) and consequently, team performance. In addition, we investigate whether social support at work helps to prevent possible disadvantageous effects of team members’ family demands on team processes. Using a sample of 61 teams (520 employees), we found that team members’ average family demands were negatively related to supervisor-ratings of team performance, through reduced taskwork. Supervisor and organizational social support attenuated this negative relationship. Family demands were positively related to teamwork when coworker and supervisor support were high. These findings specify that under conditions of adequate support at work, harmful effects of a team’s family context on team performance are less likely, whereas teamwork is even enhanced.

A daily diary study of work-life balance in managers: utilizing a daily process model

Abstract We extend the literature in relation to daily diary and managers’ wellbeing by unravelling how daily work and family factors influence managers’ wellbeing the following day. Four days’ diary data were collected from 131 managers. Family–work conflict from one day positively influenced job burnout in the following day, while autonomy satisfaction from one-day reduced burnout the following day. Family–work enrichment from one day positively influenced work engagement in the following day, as did needs satisfaction (autonomy, competence, and relatedness) and perceived autonomous support. Furthermore, daily burnout reduced work–life balance and this was fully mediated by daily work–family conflict. In addition, daily engagement increased work–life balance and this was partially mediated by daily work–family enrichment.

How role jugglers maintain relationships at home and at work: A gender comparison.

We examined how demands and resources in a role relate to the quality of relationships in another role. In Study 1, 26 cohabiting dual-earner couples reported on five consecutive days about their work demands and work resources, emotional support they provided to the spouse, and relationship quality among family members. Dyadic data analysis revealed that husbands’ work demands were negatively related to family relationship quality through reduced emotional support provided to their wives. Wives’ work resources were positively related family relationship quality through enhanced emotional support provided to their husbands. In Study 2, we explored whether the same gender pattern existed in the home-to-work direction. Sixty-four coworker dyads reported on five days about their home demands and resources, emotional support provided to their coworker, and relationship quality among team members. For male employees, home demands were negatively related to team relationship quality through reduced emotional support they provided to their coworker. For female employees, home resources were positively related to team relationship quality through enhanced emotional support they provided to their coworker. The findings suggest that relative to men, women prevent role demands from reducing the support they provide in another role and use role resources to enhance the support they provide in another role, thereby strengthening relationship quality in that role.