Paula Brough

Work/family conflict, psychological well‐being, satisfaction and social support: a longitudinal study in New Zealand

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.

Work–life balance: A review of the meaning of the balance construct

Although the term work–family/life balance is widely employed, an agreed definition of this term has proved elusive. Instead, an array of definitions and measures populate the literature. The variety of work–life definitions and measures provide limited value for both the theoretical advancement of the construct and for practical human resource (HR) interventions. In this article, we review six conceptualisations of work–life balance found in the literature: (1) multiple roles; (2) equity across multiple roles; (3) satisfaction between multiple roles; (4) fulfilment of role salience between multiple roles; (5) a relationship between conflict and facilitation; and (6) perceived control between multiple roles. Based on our review of this research we identify the two primary features of the work–life balance definitions and propose a new definition of this construct.

Managing Occupational Stress in a High-Risk Industry: Measuring the Job Demands of Correctional Officers

Occupational stress is an increasing health problem for the high-risk industries. The occupation of correctional officers has received relatively scant attention, contributing to a recent increase in formal occupational stress claims. This research evaluates the ability of the Job Demand-Control-Support (JDCS) model to predict strain in 132 Australian correctional officers. A specific measure of job demands predicts the psychological outcome (job satisfaction) to a greater extent than the generic (JDCS) demands measure. The ability of supervisor support to moderate the consequences of these job demands is also demonstrated and has implications for the training of correctional supervisors. Arguments for including sample-specific measures of job demands are discussed.

Organizational interventions for balancing work and home demands: An overview

Abstract The effective management of work and non-work demands can have a significant effect on workers’ health and performance. The last decade especially has seen an explosion of work-life balance research, resulting in substantial theoretical and practical advances. However, the published literature on organizational interventions to improve work-life balance is extremely sparse. In this paper, we provide some prominent examples of empirical research concerning work-life balance organizational interventions and note that these fall into three main groups: initiatives addressing working time and/or working hours, collaborative action research focused on improving workplace equity and performance levels, and initiatives to embed work-life balance within organizational cultures. We also comment on some common difficulties faced by researchers in evaluating interventions. The specific examples presented here illustrate challenges to research on the effectiveness of work-life balance interventions. We encourage researchers to reconsider the use of merely descriptive rather than more rigorous research designs and to investigate the long-term effectiveness of organizational strategies to enhance work-life balance.

Validation of the Job Demands-Resources model in cross-national samples: Cross-sectional and longitudinal predictions of psychological strain and work engagement

The Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model proposes that employee health and performance are dependent upon direct and interacting perceptions of job demands and job resources. The JD-R model has been tested primarily with small, cross-sectional, European samples. The current research extends scholarly discussions by evaluating the full JD-R model for the prediction of psychological strain and work engagement, within a longitudinal research design with samples of Australian and Chinese employees (N = 9404). Job resources (supervisor support and colleague support) accounted for substantial variance, supporting the motivational hypothesis of the JD-R model. However, minimal evidence was found for the strain hypothesis of the JD-R model. The interactions of job demands and job resources were not evident, with only one from 16 interaction tests demonstrating significance. We discuss explanations for our findings. The implications of testing western-derived organizational behavior theories among employees employed in Asian regions, especially in regard to the increasing ‘westernization’ of many Asian organizations and their employees, are also discussed.

The psychometric properties of the short version of the Cybernetic Coping scale: A multigroup confirmatory factor analysis across four samples

Throughout the literature, there appears to be little support for the psychometric characteristics of scales measuring coping behaviour. This article explores the psychometric properties of the 20-item version of the Cybernetic Coping Scale (CCS; Edwards & Baglioni, 1993). Initially, confirmatory factor analysis and internal reliability analysis were conducted on large samples of data from four different studies in order to conduct an exhaustive examination of the scale. Results provided moderate support for the 20-item version of the CCS. However, improved model modification produced moderate to strong support for a 15-item version. Multigroup confirmatory factor analysis was then conducted on the 15-item version of the CCS in order to cross-validate the measurement model across groups. Findings revealed a well-fitting model with a stable factor structure and partial measurement invariance. Both versions produced acceptable to high internal reliability. Findings indicate support for the use of the 15-item version of the CCS and suggest that this short version of the CCS is the best fitting model of all the other previously developed CCS scales.

Stable Predictors of Job Satisfaction, Psychological Strain, and Employee Retention: An evaluation of Organizational Change Within the New Zealand Customs Service

Recent changes in employment conditions have resulted in the increased exposure of workers to unfavorable job characteristics and to consequential increases in adverse individual and organizational health outcomes. In this article the authors evaluate the steps undertaken by one proactive employer to reduce these adverse outcomes. Three organization-wide surveys (n 350, 316, and 405) were conducted over a 3-year period within the New Zealand Customs Service to determine the influence of perceived job conditions on individual and organizational health outcomes. Staff retention and employee satisfaction significantly improved over time and these increases were attributable to workplace improvements. Stable predictors of job satisfaction included minor daily stressors, positive work experiences, job control, and perceived supervisor support.

Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Work Locus of Control Scale

Original formulations of the Work Locus of Control Scale (WLCS) proposed a unidimensional structure of this measure; however, more recently, evidence for a twodimensional structure has been reported, with separate subscales for internal and external loci of control. The current study evaluates the one and two-factor models with confirmatory factor analysis. The results suggest that although the two-factor model provides a better fit of the data than does the one-factor model, it still does not reach an adequate standard of fit. Exploratory factor analysis reveal the presence of a third factor, and confirmatory factor analysis indicates that the three-factor model provides a superior fit to either the one or two-factor model. This finding is replicated with a second independent sample. These findings call into question the psychometric robustness of the WLCS and indicate that further refinement is required.

Supervisor and subordinate work-family values: Does similarity make a difference?

Supervisor-subordinate similarity affects a number of workplace outcomes, but the effect of similarity in work-family values is not well understood. Our sample consisted of 209 participants (121 female and 88 male) from a range of occupations. A structural model was tested in which subordinate perceptions of supervisor work-family value similarity predicted increased supervisor support and reduced family conflict, with an indirect effect through these variables to job satisfaction. Higher work-family conflict and lower job satisfaction had significant paths to emotional exhaustion, as a key indicator of burnout. Structural equation modeling indicated a good fit to the model for both men and women. Similarity of work-family values influenced emotional exhaustion through its impact on work-family conflict and job satisfaction.

Flexible work arrangements, work engagement, turnover intentions and psychological health

Flexible work arrangements (FWAs) are often written into company policies to demonstrate organisational sensitivity to potentially difficult interfaces between employees’ work and non-work domains. The current research investigated employees’ use of FWAs and relationship to work engagement, with turnover intentions and psychological strain also used as criterion variables for comparison purposes. A heterogeneous sample of Australian employees (N = 823) responded to two waves of data collection separated by a 12-month interval. It was expected that supportive aspects of organisational culture would be consistent with increased employee utilisation of FWAs, high work engagement, low turnover and low levels of psychological strain, and the opposite would be found for hindering aspects of organisational culture. It was also expected that supportive organisational culture would demonstrate an enduring effect over time. In general, research findings supported these hypotheses. However, the research also identified a negative relationship between use of FWAs and work engagement over time. This suggests that take-up of FWAs is highly dependent on workplace cultural norms. The implications of these results are discussed.