Sunny L. Munn

Unveiling the Work–Life System: The Influence of Work–Life Balance on Meaningful Work

The Problem Individuals, organizations, and government are the primary forces studied in a work–life scenario. Too often these forces are studied independently of one another when they should instead be examined as a system. The most frequently discussed piece of the work–life system is work–life balance. Understanding how concepts of work–life balance are intertwined with meaningful work is important to individual and organizational development in human resource development (HRD). The Solution This article introduces the work–life system as a means to examine the three forces, individuals, organizations, and government, and the three work–life dimensions, balance, initiatives, and policy. The first force and the first dimension, individuals and work–life balance, are discussed to demonstrate connections between work–life balance, meaningful work, and organizational culture. Using data from the 2008 National Study of the Changing Workforce, a preliminary ordinary least squares regression analysis illustrates these relationships and provides insight for future research. The Stakeholders Work–life balance is increasingly relevant to HRD researchers and practitioners. This discussion seeks to illuminate key facets of the work–life dialogue and their impact on meaningful work to encourage further integration of the work–life system within HRD research and practice in the United States.

University Work—life Benefits and Same-Sex Couples

The problem and the solution . Lesbian and gay (LG) employees experience work—life challenges due to exclusionary language and social norms that ignore the existence of their families; denial of medical, retirement, and leave benefits; and sexual orientation discrimination that can raise legitimate fears about job loss and family survival.A supportive and inclusive work culture is needed for employers to build loyalty, increase retention, and enable employees to perform at their peak.This article examines work—life benefits at 10 public universities.Work—life benefits are often taken for granted by the vast majority of employees within an organization because the inequitable application of these benefits across all kinds of employees remains invisible.Thus,work—life benefits inequitably applied have the potential to significantly damage the performance, psyche, financial status, and well-being of LG employees and their families. Recommendations for changes in organizational practices, policies, and language are provided.

Work–Life Balance A Cross-Cultural Review of Dual-Earner Couples in India and the United States

The Problem Today’s global workforce is rife with dual-earner couples. For dual-earner couples, finding a suitable balance between work and living is often difficult, creating a need for organizations globally to be aware of the similarities and dissimilarities that exist for dual-earner couples around the world. This article identifies the work–life issues of dual-earner couples and organizational practices in both the United States and India in an effort to help organizations effectively manage work–life policies affecting the gender role dynamics of today’s multicultural organizations. The Solution This article identifies themes within the work–life literature for dual-earner couples in India and the United States in an effort to inform human resource development (HRD) scholars and practitioners about the current state and work–life needs of dual-earner couples in both countries. It would be beneficial for HRD professionals to understand and appreciate better workplace demographics in terms of social, cultural, and legal requirements in the two countries to encourage the creation and implementation of work–life friendly policies and environments. The Stakeholders This research benefits HRD practitioners and scholars, employers, public policy officials, and dual-earner couples employed in the United States and India. It opens the door to a better understanding of the transferability of current research to practice.

Beyond the “Ideal” Worker: Including Men in Work–Family Discussions

Work-family literature has historically been heavily focused on the experiences of married, white mothers. Recent efforts have been undertaken to correct for the omission of more diverse populations in the work-family literature. This chapter aims to summarize the current knowledge of men’s experiences at the work-family interface. Specifically, a review of literature is presented to clarify what is known about men’s work-family conflict and work-family enrichment and the theoretical frameworks for understanding men’s work-family experiences. Gaps in the literature are highlighted. Practical and theoretical implications of these findings are discussed. Furthermore, this chapter offers alternative perspectives that challenge the traditional family structure of a male breadwinner who is partnered with a woman who is focused on children and the home. The “ideal worker” is deconstructed, forming a basis for the argument that men encounter work-family issues and warrant more attention in work-family research. Suggestions for future research streams are included.

The Critical Turn in Human Resources Development

This chapter presents the evolution of the critical turn in human resource development (HRD). The chapter includes a description of theory, understanding the dynamic relationship of theory to practice, and an examination of the need for critical theory in a practitioner-focused field. A brief description of critical theory is provided to support other critical paradigms used in HRD such as feminist theory/critical feminist theory, the social justice paradigm, and queer theory. The discussion centres on the space these theories made for the creation of critical human resource development, and the inclusion of critical race theory which takes HRD in a more radical direction. The chapter concludes with implications for the field.

Dis)Ableing Notions of Authentic Leadership Through the Lens of Critical Disability Theory

The Problem Persons with disabilities (PWD) are regarded as “the Other” and are sequestered from “normative” society because of their “Otherness.” “Othering” results in discrimination and the systemic preclusion of PWD. Ableism is the belief that being without a disability, impairment, or chronic illness is the norm. The notion that people without disabilities are the norm and are inherently superior is accepted without critique by those that advocate for authentic leadership. This privileges ableism and furthers the “Othering” of PWD within a leadership style intended to promote self-awareness, beliefs and ethics, and interpersonal relationships. The Solution The disabled experience and differently abled voice must be restored through relationally “being” with others and authentic dialogue. What is needed is a shift from the deficit model of authentic leadership to a social paradigm of authentic leadership, welcoming of bodily and psychic difference. This will better enable both leaders and employees to craft an authentic profile in the workplace. The Stakeholders Leaders and those who seek to become leaders following an authentic leadership approach can benefit from a better understanding of how their ingrained belief systems impact those that they lead who are both “able-bodied” and “disabled.” Human resource development (HRD) practitioners and leadership development practitioners can use this information to deconstruct and reconstruct leadership development opportunities to be inclusive as an authentic leader.

A Common Methodology: Using Cluster Analysis to Identify Organizational Culture across Two Workforce Datasets

Organizational structures are comprised of an organizational culture created by the beliefs, values, traditions, policies and processes carried out by the organization. The work-life system in which individuals use work-life initiatives to achieve a work-life balance can be influenced by the type of organizational culture within ones workplace, for example a structured, rigid culture in which employees are afraid to ask questions versus a flexible, open culture where discussion is encouraged. Grouping methodologies such as cluster analysis or latent class analysis can be used to create typologies of organizational culture. The focus of this paper is to deconstruct the common methodology of cluster analysis used to identify typologies of organizational culture in the NSCW Study and the NOS Study, which set out to identify the impact of organizational culture on the use and existence of work-life benefits for individuals and organizations, respectively Munn, 2012. The paper discusses the cluster analysis methodology in detail as well as another grouping methodology-latent class analysis-as a means to understanding the place of organizational culture in work-life research. The theoretical contributions of using cluster analysis to create typologies of organizational culture and the implications for workforce research are discussed.