Michael Lane Morris

Constructs of the Work/ Life Interface: A Synthesis of the Literature and Introduction of the Concept of Work/Life Harmony

The purpose of this article is to identify construct definitions and measurement tools for the work/life interface concepts: conflict, enrichment, and balance. An understanding of these concepts is critical to HRD professionals because interventions designed to counter work/life interface issues cannot be strategically created, and culture changes cannot be effectively addressed until the discipline understands the nature and the organizational implications of employees’ work/life interface. A new construct called work/life harmony and the work/life harmony model are introduced to aid in the understanding of the work/life interface.

Predictors of Family Functioning Among Clergy and Spouses: Influences of Social Context and Perceptions of Work-Related Stressors

We wished to identify predictors of family functioning from models including perceptions of stresses associated with mobility, financial compensation, intrusiveness to family boundaries, expectations on time demands, and the lack of social support. Data were collected from 136 randomly selected couples from six denominations in which husbands were clergy. Participants completed a survey that included the Clergy Family Life Inventory which assessed perceptions of five work-related stressors and the Self Report Measure of Family Functioning scale which measured 12 dimensions of family functioning. Separate regression models were tested for husbands and wives and these analyses indicated that no single stressor seemed influential for all 12 dimensions of family functioning. However, for both husbands and wives, family boundary intrusiveness, lack of social support, and mobility stresses influenced their competence in numerous areas of family functioning. In addition, husbands and wives experienced similar effects of stress among several dimensions of family functioning (e.g. enmeshment, family organization, democratic family atmosphere expressiveness).

Who Will Attend? Characteristics of Couples and Individuals in Marriage Education

There are two purposes of this marriage education marketing study: (1) to compare the self-reported intra- and interpersonal qualities of 121 married couples (n = 242 individuals) attending a marriage education program with 46 married couples (n = 92 individuals) who were contacted through marketing promotional materials to attend the program but did not participate and (2) to determine if intra- and/or interpersonal qualities would predict the likelihood of marriage education attendance versus nonattendance. Results showed that compared with program nonparticipants, program participants reported lower levels of self-esteem, marital communication quality, marital commitment, marital satisfaction, family strengths, less consensus and intimacy, less fulfillment of marriage expectations, and increased levels of marital conflict. Levels of religiosity and fusion were the same for participants and nonparticipants. Wald logistic regression analysis indicated communication was the only significant predictor of marriage education participation. Implications for marriage education programming and practitioners are outlined.

The availability and importance of Denominational Support Services as perceived by Clergy Husbands and their wives

Previous research by Morris and Blanton (1994b) used the Denominational Support Service Checklist (DSSC) to determine whether or not denominations were providing support services in any organized/systematic way to the clergy and their wives in their denomination. The DSSC has a yes/no format containing 21 support services that are divided into four areas of support. The four areas of support services included psychological services (3), career development services (6), family oriented services (7), and financial services (5). As a follow-up to the previous study, the purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions of clergy husbands and their wives regarding the availability and importance of support services provided by their sponsoring denomination. The sample of the study included 136 ordained married clergy males and their non-clergy spouses (n=272) randomly selected from six denominations in the United States. The six denominations included the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC); Lutheran Missouri Synod (LMS); Church of God, Cleveland, Tennessee (COG); Seventhday Adventists (SDA); the American Baptist Church (ABC); and the Episcopal Church (EC). Each husband and wife completed The Perceived Availability of Denominational Support Services (PADSS) and The Perceived Importance of the Denominational Support Service (PIDSS). The PADSS has a yes/no format and the PIDSS is a 3 point Likert-type questionnaire that corresponds identically (e.g., 21 items divided into four support areas) with the DSSC. Findings from the study indicated that a majority of clergy and their wives perceived that their sponsoring denominations were not making available those services that they perceived were important. Additionally, gender differences in reports of availability and importance were found indicating that some denominations may not be providing support services that enhance the quality tof life for the entire clergy family system. Recommendations and suggestions are made to encourage and guide denominations in providing support services for clergy families.

Examining the Relationship Between Work/Life Conflict and Life Satisfaction in Executives The Importance of Problem-Solving Coping Interventions and HRD

The Problem Determining “what” and “how” people are satisfied personally and with work has become an ongoing stream of research for both academics and practitioners. Yet research has contributed to confusing the issue and has not been able to provide any distinct answers to this problem. The Solution This study goes beyond current research by examining how problem-focused coping resources are used to ameliorate the negative relationship between work/life conflict and life satisfaction. Based on a sample of 491 executives, structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to test the mediational ability of problem-solving coping. Problem-solving coping was found to partially mediate the negative relationship between work/life conflict and life satisfaction. The Stakeholders Human resource development (HRD) scholars and practitioners interested in researching and reducing work/life conflict. A discussion of the importance of HRD interventions targeting problem-focused coping skills is included.

The Family Ties That Bind: How Emotion and Family Dynamics Preserve Socioemotional Wealth

Family business researchers contend that family firms differ from nonfamily firms because they make unique strategic decisions that preserve socioemotional wealth (SEW). However, extant family firm...