Noraini M. Noor

Work-Family Conflict, Work- and Family- Role Salience, and Women's Well-Being

The author considered both the direct effect and the moderator effect of role salience in the stress-strain relationship. In contrast to previous studies that have examined the effects of salience on well-being within specific social roles, the present study focused on the work-family interface. From a sample of 147 employed English women with children, the present results of the regression analyses showed that both effects are possible, depending on the outcome measures used. The author observed a direct effect of role salience in the prediction of job satisfaction; work salience was positively related to job satisfaction, over and above the main-effect terms of work-interfering-with-family (WIF) conflict and family-interfering-with-work (FIW) conflict. In contrast, the author found a moderator effect of role salience and conflict for symptoms of psychological distress. However, contrary to predictions, the author found that work salience exacerbated the negative impact of WIF conflict, rather than FIW conflict, on well-being. The author discussed these results in relation to the literature on work-family conflict, role salience, and the issue of stress-strain specificity.

Work-Family Conflict, Locus of Control, and Women's Well-Being: Tests of Alternative Pathways

Abstract The author tested for the 3 possible pathways (i.e., direct, moderator, and mediator effects) in which locus of control can influence the relationship between work-family conflict and well-being. The author predicted that work-family conflict would be negatively correlated with well-being. In a sample of 310 Malaysian employed women with families, work-family conflict was a significant predictor of both job satisfaction and distress–negatively related to job satisfaction and positively related to symptoms of distress. More important, the results provided support for the effects of all 3 pathways of control on the relationship between work-family conflict and well-being, depending on the outcome measure: For job satisfaction, locus of control had direct effects, acted as a partial mediator, and played a significant moderating role. In contrast, only the direct effect of locus of control predicted distress. The author discusses those findings with reference to the literature on work-family conflict, locus of control, and the issue of stress-distress specificity.

Work- and family-related variables, work-family conflict and women's well-being: some observations

The present study was carried out to test an exploratory model consisting of three sets of variables (demographic, personality and work- and family-related variables) in the prediction of well-being. The model also provided a test of the indirect effect of these variables on well-being, via perceptions of work–family conflict. Both quantitative and qualitative analyses were used. In a sample of 147 employed British women with children, the results showed that these three sets of variables had both direct and indirect influence on well-being. Although work-related variables explained the most variance in the prediction of work- interfering-with-family conflict and job satisfaction, personality variables accounted for the most variance in the prediction of family-interfering-with-work conflict. Similarly, in the prediction of distress symptoms, demographic variables accounted for the most variance. The qualitative responses provided by the women complemented these findings. The proposed model appears to provide a better fit of the complex relationships that may exist between the many variables encompassing womens work and family lives than previous ones that have considered only one set of variables.

Work and family roles in relation to women's well-being : The role of negative affectivity

Abstract Negative affectivity (NA), a trait that emphasizes negative aspects of the environment, has been shown to have both direct and confound effects on the stressor—strain relationship. Lately, this confound role of NA has attracted much attention, and calls have been made for self-report studies to incorporate NA as a control. As previous studies of womens roles and well-being have not considered the influence of NA in their models, the present study aims to examine (i) the extent to which NA acts as a confound, and (ii) other possible roles of NA in the relationship between womens roles and well-being (e.g. NA having a direct effect, NA as a moderator or mediator). In a sample of 145 employed and non-employed women, results from regression analyses showed that NA had direct effects on well-being, and also acted as a partial confound for symptoms of both distress and happiness. NA inflated the relationship between certain role variables and distress symptoms, but was found to underestimate the influence of certain role variables in predicting happiness. Neither the moderator role nor the mediator role of NA was observed. These findings are discussed with respect to recent work in the stress literature.

Some demographic, personality, and role variables as correlates of women's well-being

This study examined the contributions of some demographic (age and education), personality (extraversion and neuroticism), and role variables (role occupancy and role quality) as predictors of happiness and symptoms of psychological distress in a sample of employed and non-employed English women (N= 145). Using multiple regression analysis, the results showed that personality variables accounted for the largest proportion of explained variance in the well-being measures. The results, however, did not support the predictions made by the transactional model of stress and that the three sets of predictor variables (demographic, personality and roles) combined additively in their effects on womens psychological well-being. Finally, the results showed that happiness and distress, though related, had different correlates. These findings are discussed in relation to current issues within the literature on womens work and family roles in relation to their well-being.

Work and women's well-being: religion and age as moderators.

Religion has been found to moderate the stress–strain relationship. This moderator role, however, may be dependent on age. The present study tested for the three-way interaction between work experience, age, and religiosity in the prediction of women’s well-being, and predicted that work experience and religiosity will combine additively in older women, while in younger women religiosity is predicted to moderate the relationship between work experience and well-being. In a sample of 389 married Malay Muslim women, results of the regression analyses showed significant three-way interactions between work experience, age, and religiosity in the prediction of well-being (measured by distress symptoms and life satisfaction). While in younger women the results were in line with the predictions made, in the older women, both additive and moderator effects of religiosity were observed, depending on the well-being measures used. These results are discussed in relation to the literature on work and family, with specific reference to women’s age, religion, as well as the issue of stress–strain specificity.

Malaysian Women's State of Well-Being: Empirical Validation of a Conceptual Model

The author carried out the present study to examine the determinants of Malaysian womens well-being. Specifically, the author proposed a theoretical model of womens roles and well-being—made up of roles, negative affectivity, conflict, and health—and statistically validated it in a group of women occupying both work and family roles (N = 389). Using a life-course approach (P. Moen, 1998) to roles and well-being, the author further examined the model in women of 3 different age groups (age of Group 1 = 20-29 years, age of Group 2 = 30-39 years, and age of Group 3 = 40 years and older). The results supported the proposed model, which showed reasonable fit when applied to the 3 groups of women. The results also indicated that the predictors of womens well-being differ according to their respective age groups. The author discussed these findings in relation to the life-course approach to womens roles.

The future of Malay–Chinese relations in Malaysia

In this chapter, the Malay–Chinese relation is examined by considering the history and nature of the relationship, the ensuing intergroup conflict, and the steps taken by the government and civil society groups to address the conflict. Finally, a psychocultural approach to building peace between the two groups is proposed.

Prevalence and factors associated with depressive symptoms in Malay women.

Background: Due to a dearth of research on depressive symptoms in Malaysia, particularly in Malay women, a community study was conducted to examine the prevalence and factors associated with current depressive symptoms in rural and urban Malay women with low socioeconomic status. Method: Four hundred eighty-seven women (N rural = 242, N urban = 245) were interviewed. Information on socio-demographic variables, potential risk factors (family history of mental health problems, lifetime major depressive symptoms, and current life stressors), and current depressive symptoms (measured by the Centre for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, CES-D) was collected. Results: The prevalence of current depressive symptoms (CES-D scores ≥ 16) reported was 34.5%, while the prevalence of lifetime major depressive symptoms was 27.5%. A significantly higher rate of current depressive symptoms was observed in urban women compared to rural women, χ2 (1, N = 487) = 3.99, p < .05. However, no significant difference was found in the two groups of women in the prevalence of lifetime major depressive symptoms. The results of the multiple hierarchical regression analysis indicated that three potential factors (family history of mental health problems, lifetime major depressive symptoms, and current life stressors) were positively associated with current depressive symptoms, accounting for 17.8% of the variance, over and above the socio-demographic variables. Conclusion: The prevalence of depressive symptoms reported in the study was comparable to past studies. Among the factors associated with current depressive symptoms, the single most important was lifetime major depressive symptoms, followed by current life stressors, and family history of mental health problems. Among the socio-demographic variables used, perceived health status was the most important. The factors associated with depressive symptoms found in this study are consistent with past findings in the West, implying the universality of the phenomenon and common factors related to depressive symptoms in women.

The future of peace psychology in Asia

The theories and practices of peace psychology in Asia are conditioned by a host of cultural, historical, and social-political factors in this part of the world. Christie, Wagner, and Winter (2001), Christie (2006), and Christie, Tint, Wagner, and Winter (2008) claim that violence and peace are expressions of the interactions among these macro factors. Montiel, in the introductory chapter of this volume, likewise stresses the embeddedness of social violence and peace in multiple macro-layers and the interconnectedness of social violence and peace. She succinctly argues that due to Asia’s rich history of peace and conflict, peace psychology in the region will likewise negotiate its course in reference to the legacies of its political history. Christie (2006) emphasizes the 2 × 2 systems perspective that violence and peace are expressed in both direct and structural forms.