Work–Family Spillover and Crossover Effects of Sexual Harassment: The Moderating Role of Work–Home Segmentation Preference

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between workplace sexual harassment as perceived by female employees and the family satisfaction of their husbands. It also considered the mediating roles of employees’ job tension and work-to-family conflict (WFC) and the moderating role of employees’ work–home segmentation preference in this relationship. The results, based on data from 210 Chinese employee–spouse dyads collected at four time points, indicated that employees’ perceptions of sexual harassment were positively related to their job tension, which in turn increased WFC. Moreover, WFC was negatively related to spouse family satisfaction. The negative relationship between sexual harassment and spouse family satisfaction was mediated by employees’ job tension and WFC. Finally, work–home segmentation preference attenuated the relationship between job tension and WFC. Our results provided insightful theoretical contributions and managerial implications for the sexual harassment and work–family literatures.