Department of Management & Organisation

A short report from Hung Yuchen on her research findings presented in the conference.

At an interactive session, we presented our paper to fellow scholars who were similarly engaged in research on work-family balance. The abstract of our paper is as follows:

Work can intrude into the family domain across the work-family boundary in the forms of overtime work and working from home. Guided by role theory, identity theory, and boundary theory, the current study examined antecedents and consequence of these two boundary crossing behaviors based on reports from 433 workers. Work overload was found to be positively correlated with overtime work. Role identities and desire for segregation were also found to be significantly correlated with both overtime work and working from home. Overtime work was found to be positively related to work-to-family interference. Our current study has extended the work-family literature by jointly examining both the time and space markers of the work-family boundary.

Dr Van Steenbergen from Utrecht University facilitated the session. Other papers examined the impact of expatriation/country relocation on work-family conflict; emotional resilience and cognitive hardiness as individual difference factors moderating the effects of workplace conflict; the experience of working adults undertaking part-time MBA programs who juggled ‘tripartite role responsibilities’ of work, family, and study; the influence of workload on diet choice and physical health. In addition to focused discussions on each specific paper, the group also bandied ideas regarding nascent questions at the intersection of the various perspectives presented. For example, on the buffering effect of work resources, to what extent will it no longer help to reduce negative feelings or attitudes among individuals? Can the absence of work-family conflict tell us as much as its presence? The gathering concluded with some exchange of contacts among participants so conversations could continue beyond AOM 2008.