Negative Work-home Interference Research Articles

Job characteristics, ill health and negative work-home interference in the mining industry

The objective of this research was to test a structural model including job demands, job resources, ill health and negative work-home interference (WHI). Random samples (N = 320) were taken from employees working in the mining industry. The results indicated that job demands and job resources had an impact on ill health, and that ill health was associated with negative WHI. It was also found that job demands had a direct relationship with negative WHI, in addition to the indirect relationship through ill health. Job resources were not related not negative WHI.

Job characteristics, burnout and negative workhome interference in a nursing environment

The objectives of this study were 1) to determine which job characteristics are associated with burnout and 2) to determine the mediating role of negative work-home interference (WHI) in the relationship between job characteristics and burnout within a nursing environment. Random samples (n = 300) were taken of nurses working in the Johannesburg, Klerksdorp, Krugersdorp, Pretoria and Potchefstroom areas. The results of the regression analyses indicated that the main job characteristics that predict exhaustion were pressure and a lack of autonomy, role clarity, colleague support and financial support. A lack of role clarity, colleague support and financial support were the main job characteristics that predict mental distance. Negative WHI played a partially mediating role in the relationship between job characteristics and burnout.

Role interference and subjective well-being among expatriate families

The present study examined the relation of demands and social support, and positive and negative Work-Home (WHI) and Home-Work interference (HWI) with the subjective well-being of expatriates. Moreover, we were also interested in crossover effects of expatriate interference to the subjective well-being of their spouses. In a questionnaire study among expatriate couples (N = 72), we found that particularly home demands, and the negative spillover effects of expatriate roles at home on their work roles were related to expatriate and spouse subjective well-being. Crossover effects from one partner to the other seemed to run via subjective well-being in one partner to subjective well-being in the other, supporting the idea of emotional contagion among couples in times of stress.

Specific relationships between job demands, job resources and psychological outcomes and the mediating role of negative work–home interference

This study among 115 US and 260 Dutch nurses and nurse assistants tested a theoretically derived model of specific relationships between work characteristics and two theoretically distinct outcomes (i.e., emotional exhaustion and job satisfaction). Furthermore, the mediating role of negative work–home interference (NWI) in this context was examined. It was hypothesized that emotional exhaustion is related to job demands (i.e., psychological and emotional demands), and that job satisfaction is primarily associated with job resources (i.e., job control). Workplace social support was proposed to relate to both outcomes. In addition, we expected NWI to partially mediate the hypothesized relationships. Finally, we expected this pattern to be similar across the two samples. Structural equation modeling (LISREL) indicated (1) that our postulated model largely fitted to the data in both samples (same pattern), and (2) that NWI partially mediated the relationship between psychological job demands and emotional exhaustion in the Dutch sample. It can be concluded that the results supported our proposed pattern of specific relationships and, to a lesser extent, the partial mediating role of NWI. Practical implications and methodological limitations were discussed.

Associations between overtime and psychological health in high and low reward jobs

This study focused on the relationship between overtime and psychological health in high and low reward jobs, and in jobs with high and low external pressure to work overtime. Data were collected for 535 full-time employees of the Dutch Postal Service. In general, overtime was associated with negative work-home interference and negative home-work interference. Split-sample logistic regression analyses showed that employees reporting low rewards had elevated risks of burnout, negative work-home interference and slow recovery. In addition, the combination of overtime and low rewards was associated with negative home-work interference. A second analysis was conducted separately for employees who reported overtime in order to study the effects of external pressure to work overtime. In this subgroup, low rewards were associated with elevated risks of health complaints, emotional exhaustion and negative home-work interference. Moreover, employees who reported overtime and a high pressure to work overtime in combination with low rewards had elevated risks of poor recovery, cynicism, and negative work-home interference. The results suggest that even a limited number of hours of involuntary overtime is associated with adverse mental health, but only in low reward situations.