A Three-wave Study of Antecedents of Work-Family Enrichment: The Roles of Social Resources and Affect

How Family-Supportive Leadership Communication Enhances the Creativity of Work-From-Home Employees during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Adapting to the remote working environment has been one of the most visible challenges for many organizations during the COVID-19 pandemic. As employee creativity helps organizations' survival and resilience during times of crisis, this study aims to examine the role of leadership communication, family-supportive leadership communication in particular, in fostering creativity among work-from-home employees. The current study specifically focuses on the mediating processes in this relationship and the moderating role of employees' work-life segmentation preferences, using a survey of 449 employees who have worked from home during the COVID-19 outbreak. The results showed that employee-organization relationship (EOR) quality, positive affect, and work-life enrichment mediate the relationship between family-supportive leadership communication and employee creativity. The effects of family-supportive leadership communication on employees' positive affect and work-life enrichment were more prominent for those who prefer to segment their work and lives. This paper concludes with a discussion of the theoretical and practical implications of these findings for leadership in organizational communication.

The Relationship between Personality Traits, Work-Family Support and Job Satisfaction among Frontline Power Grid Workers

Frontline power grid workers are always facing plenty of stressors such as aerial work and high job demands, which may lead them to be less satisfied with their job. Therefore, this study aims to investigate frontline power grid workers' job satisfaction (JS) and explore how it can be improved by its relationship with personality traits and work-family support (WFS). Data from 535 frontline power grid workers were collected from two power supply bureaus in Guangdong Province, China. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was adopted to examine the structural relationship between personality traits taken as independent variables, JS as dependent variable, and WFS as mediator. The bootstrap method was used to test the significance of indirect effects. Results suggested the overall job satisfaction of our sample is 3.34 ± 0.55 on a scale ranging from 1 to 5, and significantly correlated with personality traits and WFS. Moreover, the results of SEM and bootstrap indicated that WFS partially mediates the effect of neuroticism on JS and fully mediates the effect of conscientiousness and extraversion on JS. These findings shed light on how personality traits and environmental factors jointly impact JS and highlight the important role of WFS among frontline power grid workers.

An Interwoven Psychological Syndrome of Job Burnout and Work Engagement in Construction Project Management Professionals Due to Work-Family Imbalance

Most current studies on the mental health of construction project management professionals (CPMPs) are conducted from a negative psychological perspective, lacking a comprehensive understanding of the positive-negative interwoven mechanism. This study developed a positive-negative dual-process psychological model of CPMPs to explore the interwoven mechanisms among five variables: family-supportive supervisor behavior (FSSB), work-family conflict, work-family enrichment, job burnout, and work engagement. We conducted a large-scale questionnaire survey among Chinese CPMPs. A total of 656 questionnaires were returned; 446 were considered valid. The groups of CPMPs prone to occupational psychological problems were identified, which enhanced the targeted organizational management in the construction industry. The hypothetical model was verified with SEM. The results revealed that the effect of work-family enrichment was more significant than work-family conflict, which implies that the positive psychology process may play a more prominent role than the negative process. There was a significant correlation between FSSB and work-family conflict/ enrichment; but no direct correlation between FSSB and job burnout/work engagement. This implies that the improvement of the work-family relationship plays a full mediating role in improving CPMPs' occupational psychological health. This research provides a thorough understanding of CPMPs' interwoven occupational psychological problems and gives suggestions to enhance their occupational psychological health.

Does COVID-19 pandemic trigger career anxiety in tourism students? Exploring the role of psychological resilience

This study aims to determine how the COVID-19 pandemic affects career anxiety of tourism students, who are the potential future employees of tourism and hospitality industry. Data was collected using an online survey with 1097 undergraduate students in the field of tourism in Turkey. The results of the study revealed that perceived risk of infection and fear of COVID-19 significantly impact students' career anxiety, and fear of COVID-19 mediate the relationship between perceived infection risk and career anxiety. In addition, the results indicated that psychological resilience, which is an individual resource against difficulties, represents a factor that reduces career anxieties of students in the face of pandemic-related negative impacts. The findings contribute to the understanding of how pandemic diseases affect career anxiety in students, who are the future workforce of the tourism sector, and to determine the role of individual resources such as psychological resilience in this process.

Stress in Balancing Work and Family among Working Parents in Hong Kong

Work-life imbalance might lead to detrimental outcomes, including family dissatisfaction, poor performance in the workplace, and poor mental and physical health. This population-based study aims to explore the situation and trends in regard to work-life balance among working men and women in 2017, with a special focus on the stress experienced in work and personal lives. Descriptive analysis and multiphase regression are used to explore the associations of work-life imbalance with individual and family factors. Males' satisfaction with the amount of time spent at work was most significantly related to the level of work-life stress. Both males' and females' satisfaction with work life, family life, and the amount of time spent at work and with family were all negatively related to the level of work-life stress. Participants who were not in marital or cohabiting status reported significantly higher levels of work-life stress. Participants who had childcare support reported higher levels of work-life stress than those who looked after their children by themselves or their partners. A similar pattern was found among participants involved in elderly care. This study provides insight into family policy that could promote balance in professional and personal life and relationships.

Influence of Border-Keepers' Support on Work-Family Enrichment of Preschool Teachers in China: The Mediating Role of Work-Family Boundary Flexibility

Based on work-family border theory and work-home resource theory (W-HR), this paper examines the impact of border keeper’s support (organizational support and family support) on work-family enrichment and whether or how work-family boundary flexibility mediates the relationship between border keeper’s support and work-family enrichment. A sample of 504 preschool teachers in Guangdong province, China completed questionnaires. The research results show a two-way process of work-family enrichment for preschool teachers in China. Organizational support was directly and significantly correlated with work-to-family enrichment (WFE), and family support was significantly and directly correlated with family-to-work enrichment (FWE). Organizational support had no significant positive predictive effect on work boundary flexibility which has a significant positive predictive effect on WFE. Family support had a significant positive predictive effect on family boundary flexibility which had a significant positive predictive effect on the FWE. In addition, the study found that family boundary flexibility mediates the relationships between family support and FWE whereas work boundary flexibility did not mediate the relationships between organizational support and WFE. The above research results are partly consistent with the existing research, and partly inconsistent, which is related to the profound influence of traditional culture in Chinese society and the current situation of preschool teachers in China. Such findings have important implications for improving the work-family enrichment of preschool teachers.

Family-to-work enrichment associations between family meal atmosphere and job satisfaction in dual-earner parents

Research on factors related to job satisfaction in parents has mainly focused on work-related variables, paying less attention to family events that may provide parents with resources to invest in the work domain. To contribute to this body of knowledge, this study examined the associations between family meal atmosphere and job satisfaction in dual-earner parents with adolescent children, and tested the mediating role of family-to-work enrichment (FtoWE) between family meal atmosphere and job satisfaction. Questionnaires were administered to 473 different-gender dual-earner parents in Temuco, Chile. Participants answered the Project-EAT Atmosphere of family meals scale, three items that measure FWE from the Work-Home Interaction Survey, and the Overall Job Satisfaction Scale. Analyses were conducted using the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model and structural equation modelling. A positive association was found from family meal atmosphere to job satisfaction, directly and via FtoWE in fathers, and only via FtoWE in mothers. No associations were found for these variables between parents, as, one parent's perception of a pleasant family meal atmosphere is positively associated with their own FtoWE and job satisfaction, but not with those of the other parent. These findings suggest policymakers and organizations to account for workers' experiences in the family domain to improve satisfaction in the work domain.

Work and nonwork engagements between life domains: Effects on subjective health and life satisfaction of employees across 53 nations varying in economic competitiveness

Using the framework of role balance theory, the authors take a cross-national view of an employee’s engagement in the work and nonwork domains of life. Employing the World Values Survey (WVS) with a sample of 21,270 married employees from 53 nations, we find cross-national variations in the relationship of employees’ degree of work and nonwork domain engagements with their subjective health and satisfaction with life. To explore the impact of the national focus on motivation for economic productivity and innovation, we used a country’s global competitiveness index (GCI), predicting that a nation’s GCI would moderate the relationship of an employee’s work and nonwork domain engagements with both subjective health and life satisfaction. Overall, the results suggest that work–nonwork balance leads to better subjective health and higher life satisfaction only for married employees living in nations high in GCI; for married employees living in countries low in GCI, higher subjective health and life satisfaction resulted for those more highly engaged in nonwork life domains. Theoretical and methodological contributions are discussed, along with implications for future research on national culture concerning work and its impact on employed persons.

Do job insecurity, anxiety and depression caused by the COVID-19 pandemic influence hotel employees' self-rated task performance? The moderating role of employee resilience

The COVID-19 health disaster has had a dramatic impact on the global hospitality industry, affecting millions of people. The aim of this study is to examine the impact of job insecurity on hotel employees' anxiety and depression, and whether these psychological strains could influence employees' self-rated task performance during the COVID-19 pandemic. We also examine the moderating role of hotel employees' resilience in this context. The hypotheses were examined by collecting data from 353 hotel employees currently working in the Canary Islands (Spain). The results highlight the significant effects of job insecurity on employees' anxiety and depression levels. However, hotel employees' task performance was not affected by their job insecurity or by their anxiety and depression. In addition, employees' resilience has a moderating effect as it reduces the negative influence of job insecurity on depression. Finally, the discussion section sets out various theoretical and practical implications of the findings.

My Family Stands Behind Me: Moderated Mediation Model of Family Support and Work Engagement

Family motivation as a mediating mechanism is a novel and under-researched area in the field of positive organizational scholarship. Drawing on Social Exchange Theory (SET), this study empirically validates family motivation as a mediator between family support and work engagement. The process by Hayes (2013) was used to analyze time-lagged data collected from 356 employees of the education sector. Results confirm the mediating role of family motivation in the relationship between family support and work engagement and the moderating role of calling in the relationship between family support and family motivation. This study adds to the literature of family-work enrichment accounts by validating family support as a novel antecedent for family motivation and positive attitudes. The implications of the study are discussed.

Work-Sports Enrichment in Amateur Runners: A Diary Study

Many employees worldwide combine a job with serious, goal-oriented ambitions in the athletic domain. However, scientific knowledge about day-to-day linkages between work and sports is lacking. We filled this gap in the literature by examining how experiences at work can enrich sports after work. Extending the work-home resources model to the work-sports interface, we posited that proactive work behaviors positively relate to work engagement - a state that may permeate into the sports domain and relate to positive sports outcomes. We conducted a diary study among 170 working recreational runners (598 measurement occasions). Within a three-week period, participants completed two surveys on days they worked and ran after work. Survey 1, completed at the end of the workday, covering proactive work behavior and work engagement, and survey 2, completed after running and covering running performance. The results of multilevel structural equation modeling indicated that on days employees showed more proactive behavior, they also reported higher work engagement. In turn, on days they reported higher work engagement, they recorded a steadier running pace. We discuss how these findings support the phenomenon of work-to-sports spillover and contribute to the current understanding of the interplay between work and sports.

Work–family enrichment: an integrative review

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to provide an integrative review of work–family enrichment literature.

Design/methodology/approach

The study is based upon 206 peer-reviewed papers derived from systematic search in the Scopus database. The review ascertains its relevance by analyzing the publication trends, research designs, data analysis techniques, sample characteristics, measures and findings of selected articles.

Findings

The study notes a rising trend of publication activity in the Asian region on this topic. Empirical research using regression is the most popular research design in this field. Most of the research studies have targeted samples based on family type and/or gender. The majority of the studies include directionality to measure work–family enrichment. Notably, work-related antecedents and consequences have received the most attention from the research community. Crossover models have concentrated on spousal dyad samples.

Originality/value

As per the authors' knowledge, the study is a primary attempt to integrate the extant literature on this subject. Additionally, the study presents the gender role ideology as a potential moderator and provides future research directions along with managerial implications.

Perceiving a Resourcefulness: Longitudinal Study of the Sequential Mediation Model Linking Between Spiritual Leadership, Psychological Capital, Job Resources, and Work-to-Family Facilitation

In order to improve our understanding of whether and how spiritual leadership promotes positive work-family outcomes from a resource perspective, this study proposed and tested for the first time a conceptual model incorporating job resources and psychological capital as the mediating factors between spiritual leadership and facilitation. We tested a theoretical model with date obtained from 529 Chinese workers who completed questionnaires in a four-wave survey. The results showed that the relationship between spiritual leadership and work-to-family facilitation was mediated by job resources alone, as well as job resources and psychological capital in sequence. Thus, this research may also pave the way for future spiritual leadership research on follower outcomes in other domains (e.g., community and school) by shifting the present spiritual leadership research focus from work outcomes to personal life. Implications for theory, managerial practices, limitation, and future research were discussed.

Factors associated with work-family enrichment among Chinese nurses assisting Wuhan's fight against the 2019 COVID-19 pandemic

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

To examine the relationship between work-family enrichment and two contextual factors (job support and family support), together with two personal factors (family boundary flexibility and prosocial motivation) among Chinese nurses assisting Wuhan in its fight against the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

BACKGROUND

The COVID-19 pandemic was first reported in Wuhan, China, and has now spread worldwide, which has brought attention to the pivotal role of nurses in public health emergencies. Work-family enrichment is a bidirectional structure, including work-to-family enrichment and family-to-work enrichment, that can yield many mutually beneficial results in both work and family domains among clinical nurses. However, few studies have investigated work-family enrichment and its influential factors among front-line nurses during public health emergencies.

METHODS

A cross-sectional research design was adopted with a snowball sample of 258 Chinese nurses assisting Wuhan's anti-pandemic efforts. Data were collected from 21 March 2020 until 10 April 2020 through a battery of online questionnaires. Descriptive, univariate and hierarchical linear regression analyses and a Pearson correlation test were performed. A STROBE checklist was used to report findings.

RESULTS

The results showed that prosocial motivation, family support and job support predicted high work-to-family enrichment in those nurses, while prosocial motivation, family support and family boundary flexibility predicted high family-to-work enrichment.

CONCLUSIONS

The study confirmed the importance of paying attention to the work-family enrichment of front-line medical workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, so that they could concentrate on their anti-pandemic work and maintain their enthusiasm for disaster nursing.

RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE

The findings can help health administrators in affected countries around the world identify the influential factors of work-family enrichment among front-line nurses during infectious disease outbreaks, specifically in the areas of mobilising nurses' prosocial motivation and giving sufficient job support.

How does family support facilitate job satisfaction? Investigating the chain mediating effects of work-family enrichment and job-related well-being

While a direct relationship between family support and job satisfaction has received empirical support, few work-family studies have examined how family support leads to job satisfaction. Drawing on the work-home resources model, we investigate the chain mediating roles of work-to-family enrichment (WFE), family-to-work enrichment (FWE), and job-related well-being on the relationship between family support and job satisfaction. Based on data collected from 439 social workers across Australia, structural equation modeling results revealed that the chain mediating effects of WFE and job-related well-being were supported. Our findings emphasize the important combination of work-family enrichment and job-related well-being in helping employees to harness support from their family members to achieve job satisfaction. We discuss both the theoretical and practical implications of the WFE, FWE, and job-related well-being mechanisms underlying the family support-job satisfaction relationship.

Job resources and satisfaction across gender: the role of work–family conflict

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the direct effects of job autonomy and co-worker support on job satisfaction, and the mediational role of work–family conflict (WFC) in the relationship between these job resources and job satisfaction in men and women.

Design/methodology/approach

A cross-sectional design was used. Participants (n=653) completed the WFC scale (Netemeyer et al., 1996), the job autonomy scale (Costigan et al., 2003), a scale of co-worker support (Sloan, 2012) and a new short multidimensional scale of job satisfaction.

Findings

Higher job autonomy and co-worker support contribute positively to job satisfaction in women and men. Co-worker support has an indirect effect on job satisfaction via WFC in women, but not in men. The WFC did not mediate the relationship between job autonomy and satisfaction in men and women.

Originality/value

This paper contributes to the research on the effects of job resources on WFC and job satisfaction, and on gender differences in the relationship between work and family.

Ambidextrous leadership, entrepreneurial orientation, and operational performance

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of ambidextrous leadership in fostering entrepreneurial orientation (EO) and operational performance. The research also seeks an insight into the moderating role that organizational social capital (OSC) plays on the relationship between ambidextrous leadership and EO.

Design/methodology/approach

The responses to the questionnaire survey were collected from 427 managers from software companies in Vietnam business context.

Findings

The data analysis verified the positive effect of ambidextrous leadership on EO, which was positively moderated by OSC. The research results also shed light on the predictive role of EO for the organization’s operational performance.

Originality/value

This research contributes to literature through identifying the convergence of entrepreneurship and operations management research streams, and the moderation role of OSC for the ambidextrous leadership-EO relationship.

The relationship between cultural intelligence and i-deals

Purpose

Cultural intelligence is the capacity to decode and harmonize with another culture for cultural synergy effects. This paper aims to examine whether cultural intelligence can activate idiosyncratic deals (i-deals) through trust as a mediator and HR localization as a moderator.

Design/methodology/approach

Cross-sectional data from respondents from joint ventures or 100 per cent foreign-invested firms in Vietnam business setting, which were tested through the structural equation modeling, provide the evidence for the research model.

Findings

Research results confirmed the positive effect of cultural intelligence on identity-based trust and knowledge-based trust, which in turn influence i-deals. HR localization was also found to play a moderating role on the relationship between identity-based trust or knowledge-based trust and i-deals.

Originality/value

Cultural intelligence literature, from this study, is further deepened through its role as a trigger for the path from cultural intelligence to i-deals.