Download - Spillover (1).pdf
-
8/9/2019 Spillover (1).pdf
1/22
-
8/9/2019 Spillover (1).pdf
2/22
-
8/9/2019 Spillover (1).pdf
3/22
102
It's about T im e
Work-fam ily spillover has important ram ifications for the functioning of the
workplace as well as th e well-b ein g o f employ ees and th eir fam ilies. For ex ample,
research show s that negative spillover and work-fam ily conflict relate to higher
rates of absenteeism , turnover, and exhaustion along w ith low er levels of pro-
duc tiv ity , job satis faction, and job commi tment.
3
H igh negativ e spillover and con -
flic t are also a ssocia ted w ith a lower qua lity o f fam ily life , g re ate r ma rita l conflic t,
poorer health, and higher levels of psychological strain, depression, stress, and
problem drinking .4
The goal of this chapter is to prom ote a fuller understanding of the concept
of spillover. In the first section, w e review the research on the spillover betw een
work and family; we discuss theoretical m odels of how people m anage their
work and fam ily ro les, hig hligh t the most impo rtan t empirical fin ding s, an d id en-
tify current lim itations in the literature. In the second section, w e draw on our
f indings from
The Cornell Coup les and Careers S tudy,
fo cu sing on the in cid ence
of spillover among couples and over the life course: H ow do the characteristics
of one spouse influence the spillover experienced by the other? How does
spillover vary across life stage? What fam ily and workplace variables affect the
spillover of the w orker and their spouse? T o answ er these questions, w e draw on
both quantita tiv e (su rvey ) and qualitativ e (fo cu s g roups and in -dep th in te rv iews )
data.
Historical Overview of the
S pillover L iteratu re
Scholarly understanding of w ork-fam ily spillover has grow n significantly
since the 1960s. Early research in the 1960s and 1970s focused on the correla-
tion betw een the quality and satisfaction of w ork life and the quality and satis-
fa ction o f nonwork life.
5
Thre e ma jor mode ls help u s unders tand th is re la tionsh ip :
com pensation, segm entation, and spillover. A ccording to the com pensation
m odel, people com pensate for dissatisfaction in one dom ain by trying to find
m ore satisfaction in the other dom ain (i.e., w ork and nonw ork satisfaction are
negativ ely co rre la ted).6 The segmenta tion model pos its th at employees compart-
m entalize w ork and nonwork life so that em otions and stresses from one dom ain
remain independent from the other domain (i.e., w ork and nonwork satisfaction
have a correlation of zero).? T he spillover m odel posits that experiences in one
dom ain spill over into and influence the other dom ain (e.g., w ork and non w ork
sat is faction are posit ive ly corre la ted) .
A lthough research evidence exists for all three relationships, the majority of
workers and fam ilies fit the spillover model.
8
For exam ple, using data from the
1977 Quality of Em ploym ent Survey, a 1994 analysis found that 68 percent of
-
8/9/2019 Spillover (1).pdf
4/22
Spillover
103
workers met th e criteria for spillo ver (work sa tisfa ctio n and nonwork satisfac tion
positively correlated), 20 percent for segmentation (m inimally correlated), and
12 percent for com pensation (negatively correlated).9 It is estim ated that the
correlation betw een work and nonwork satisfaction is betw een 0.40 and 0.48.10
Segmentation and compensation, when they do occur, are more likely to
characterize employees in nonprofessional occupations and workers who have
encountered disappointments in their career.
11
A majo r p roblem with corre la tiona l studie s is the d ifficulty in fe rring causa tion
from them. To circumvent this problem , scholars have developed measures
of spillover that directly assess the transfer of emotions, stresses, and behaviors
from one domain to the other domain (e.g., job worries distract you when
you are at hom e ). This perm its the direct assessm ent of spillover rather than
relying on a correlation to infer its presence. Moreover, scholars have
moved away from simple correlational studies to more complex research
designs and analyses (such as multivariate, longitudinal, and path analytic
studies).
W ork-Fam ily Conflict and Interference
The work-fam ily conflict and interference research is closely related to and
has developed concurrently with research on spillover. Studies on conflict
and interference are rooted in role theory, w hich argues that role conflict (and
role overload) occurs when there is a simultaneous occurrence of two
(or more) sets of pressures such that the compliance with one would make
more difficult compliance with the other.,,12 Work-family conflict and
work-fam ily interference are the direct result of incom patible pressures from
an individual's work and family roles. Both the conflict and interference
research and the spillover research examine the transfer of emotions and
behaviors from work to home and from home to work. However, the conflict
and interference research also assesses the intrusion of tasks from the work role
in to the family and vice v ersa. A second d iffe rence between the spillov er rese arch
and the conflict and interference research is that spillover denotes the transfer of
negative and positive emotions from one domain to the other. This is in
contrast to the conflict and interference research, which focuses solely on
the deleterious nature of the work-family interface (analogous to negative
spillover).
Because they are so closely related, we review here the evidence on both
spillover and conflict and interference. F or the sake of simplicity, we refer to this
sim ply as spillover, but when discussing specific findings we employ the term s
u sed by th e re search ers (conflict, interferen ce, o r sp illo ve r) to de scrib e th e work -
family relationship.
-
8/9/2019 Spillover (1).pdf
5/22
104
It's abQut T ime
W ork and Family Career Dynamics:
The Impact of Career on Family and of
Fam ily on C areer
The extent and direction of the links between work and fam ily are impor-
tant issues for both employers and employees. A grow ing consensus finds
th at employmen t has more o f a negativ e impact on fam ily life th an fam ily life
has on work life. Four studies-one using daily reports recorded at random
in te rvals , and three using c ross-sec tiona l survey methods-show that, fo r both
men and women , work in terfere s with family more than family in terferes with
work.
13
One explanation for the greater level of work-to-fam ily spillover is the rela-
tive inflexibility of work life compared to fam ily life. In most cases, employees
are required to work a set num ber of hours, w ith the scheduling and location of
work relativ ely fixed . F am ily roles, however, hav e no ex ternal guidelines for the
amount of tim e that m ust be devoted to fam ily m embers or the location in w hich
family in te ra ctions must take p lace . When work -family con flic ts do a rise , workers
can hire others to perform many domestic duties (e.g., child care, cleaning, and
cooking), w hich is rarely the case for workplace responsibilities. A s a result of
th is relativ e in flex ib ility , d emands atwork tend to invade and d ictate th e pace and
tim ing o f fam ily life.
A second explan ation is that employees ty pically have less con trol o ver deci-
sions in their w ork life than they do in their fam ily life. For example, employers
dictate and m ay alter the hours, location, or conditions of w ork w ithout notice,
w hereas w orkers exert m ore control over such decisions on the hom e front. A
1995 study of health-care professionals (nonphysicians) show ed that w hen
employees have greater influence over decisions at w ork, they are m ore able to
balance w ork and fam ily dem ands.14 Sim ilar findings em erge in
The Cornell
Couples and Careers Stu dy.
Role Involvement
Factors Influencing Spillover
According to the scarcity hypothesis, the more comm itted a person is to a par-
ticular role, the greater the chance of conflict or interference w ith other roles.
15
Consistent w ith th is hypothesis, seve ra l studie s have found that sp illove r is re la ted
to level of role involvem ent. Scholars have found that the more involved or the
m ore central an individual's work role, the greater the reported level of w ork-
family conflict.
16
Hours spent a t work , typically v iewed as an objective measure
o f ro le invo lv emen t, h as also been positiv ely related to work -fam ily in terferen ce
an d neg ative spillo ver, p articularly among women.
17
Involvement in the fam ily
-
8/9/2019 Spillover (1).pdf
6/22
Spillover
105
ro le also p red icts work -family conflict. Ego invo lvemen t in paren ting (but not th e
actual hours spent in the parental role) and high levels of fam ily involvem ent
p redic t g reate r negative work -to -family sp illove r.18
Involvem ent in either w ork or fam ily roles increases not only the likelihood
of work-family conflict and negative spillover, but also the likelihood of
positiv e spillov er. In a study of Canadian manag ers and Canadian business schoo l
alumni, scholars found greater parental role involvement to be associated
with workers' perceptions of greater benefits, both at home and at work.
19
Note, however, that such benefits are not linked to the amount of time spent
in the parenting role. In fact, for this sam ple of business school alum ni, tim e
spen t in activ e paren ting is n egativ ely co rrelated w ith positiv e sp illover.2oThus,
positive spillover appears to be a function of the value that workers place
on the parenting role and the quality of the interaction between parents and
children, not the am ount of tim e that w orkers spend in parenting. This echoes
the mantra that it is the quality not the quantity of the family time that is
important.
Gender
The relationship between gender and spillover is complex and can best
be understood by exam ining fam ily-to-work spillover and work-to-fam ily
spillover separately. G iven that w omen identify more strongly w ith the fam ily
role than do m en21and spend m ore tim e with their children than do m en,22we
expect that women also experience more family-to-work spillover than do
men. Empirical evidence regarding this hypothesis is m ixed, however. A
long itudinal daily d ia ry s tudy23and two c ross -sectiona l surveys24found that men
experience greater fam ily-to-work spillover than women. However, tw o other
studies, one of w hich w as also a daily diary study, found that w omen experience
greater fam ily-to-w ork spillover than do men, particularly w omen w ith young
children.25 Three other studies show no difference between m en and wom en
on deg ree o f farn ily -to -work in terference.26These studies lead to th e conclu sion
that there is no definitive story linking gender w ith negative fam ily-to-w ork
spillover.
,
T here is a clearer p icture reg arding th e relation sh ip between gender and work-
to-fam ily spillover. Four studies find women experience greater levels of nega-
tive work-to-fam ily spillover and work interference w ith fam ily than do men.27
Three studies report no gender differences, and one provides evidence that men
experience more time -based work -to -family conflic t than do women .28Given that
women report levels o f work commitment sim ilar to men29and th at women spend
m ore tim e than m en engaged in housework and child care, it is not surprising
th at, in many studies, women report th e h ighest levels o f wo rk - t o-family sp illover
and interference.
-
8/9/2019 Spillover (1).pdf
7/22
106
It's abou t T ime
Context: Work-Rela ted Variables
The contexts in which employees work and live influence their experience of
spillover. Several studies confirm that the m ore flexible and supportive the
workplace, th e less in terferen ce and negativ e sp illo ver th ere is from work to home.
Specif ically , hav ing a supportive supervisof 'l and hav ing supportive coworkers31
are rela ted to lower leve ls of negative work-to - family spillove r and conflic t. Degree
o f autonomy a t work ,32work variability ,33and employee con tro l ove r dec isions a t
w ork34 are also related to less w ork-to-fam ily spillover. Finally, substantial
ev id ence suggests th at th e u se o f flex time is related to lower lev els o f work -fam ily
interference.
35
These supportive practices and polic ies clearly help employees to
alleviate some of the stresses and conflicts associated w ith integrating work and
family roles .
O n the other hand, som e w orkplace conditions lead to higher levels of nega-
tive work-to-fam ily spillover. N ot surprisingly, jobs that are high in stress and
conflict are related to higher levels of negative spillover from work to h ome.36A
heavy work load and time pressures are also related to more work-fam ily con flict
and spillover.3 7Finally , among men, schedule inflex ibility is linked to greater
w ork-fam ily conflict.38Thus, a demanding, stressful, and inflexible job often
results in the spillov er o f stresses and frustrations into the home.
Context: Fam ily-Related V ariables
An important part of the context in which an individual lives is the fam ily
environment. Several characteristics of the fam ily have an impact on spillover.
N ot surprisingly, research suggests that employed parents experience greater
negative work -family sp illove r than employed nonpa rents.39P roblems with child
care are a special dilem ma that is linked to greater negative family-to-work
spillover.4o How ever, as children get older and the w orkload associated w ith
parenthood dec rease s, the family -to -work sp illove r a lso dec rease s.41The number
of children in the home is also related to spillo ver, w ith larger fam ilies repo rting
higher levels of work- to-family and family-to-work conflic t.42Surprisingly , s tudies
have not found g reate r leve ls o f family -to -work in te rfe rence among single parents
compared to partn ered paren ts.43A lthough single p aren ts h ave less support th an
parents w ith partners, they a lso have one le ss ro le (the ro le o f spousa l partner). This
trade-off m ay account for the sim ilarity of fam ily-to-w ork spillover am ong
partnered and unpartnered parents. M eshing w ork and parenthood can also be a
positive experience-a 1993 study found that parenthood was associated
w ith more positive as w ell as negative fam ily-to-work spillover, especially for
women.44
T he ways in which husbands and w ives balance their w ork and fam ily respon-
sibilities also influences spillover. M en w ith nonemployed w ives report low er
-
8/9/2019 Spillover (1).pdf
8/22
Spillover 107
lev els o f neg ative sp illov er from work to fam ily compared to th ose in two-earn er
hou~eholds.45This is not surprising-men married to full-tim e homemakers are
likely to devote less tim e and attention to domestic tasks, w hich translates into
less spillover between the two dom ains. Finally, the m ore perceived support
individuals receive from fam ily m em bers, the less work-fam ily conflict they
report experiencing.46
Linked Lives: Marital and
Paren tal Relationsh ip s
To fully understand the relationship between work and fam ily, we need to
incorporate the perspective of linked lives. People do not live in a vacuum.
Rather, th ey are socially in terd ependen t. Relationsh ip s w ith spou ses and ch ild ren
im pact workers' experiences and relationships at work and vice versa.47 For
example, a 1993 study of Boston-area dual-earner couples found that the strains
associated w ith poor marital and parental relationships spill over into and nega-
tively affect relationships and experiences at w ork. C onversely, w orkers w ho
report having quality relationships w ith their children and spouse say that their
fami ly life enhances their experiences at work.
48
Stressors and relationships at w ork can also influence the quality and tone of
interaction s w ith fam ily members. Rena Rep etti and her co lleagues found that o n
days characterized by high workloads, both mothers and fathers are more behav-
iorally and emotionally w ithdraw n from their children w hen they return home
from work. In addition, among fathers, unpleasant interactions w ith coworkers
are often followed by more n eg ative in teractions w ith their child ren.49
Marital interactions are also affected by events at work. This is called
crossover or stress contagion. C rossover occurs w hen the stresses that people
experience at w ork lead to stresses for their spouse at hom e.
50
A 1989 long itudi-
nal study of dual-earner couples found that on days when men report feelin g over-
loaded at work th eir w ives repo rt feeling overloaded at home later that ev en ing.51
Wives' feelin gs o f ov erload at work, however, d id not appear to impact h usb ands'
feelings of stress or overload in the home. Sim ilarly, a 1993 study of dual-earner
couples also found the crossover of stress from work to hom e occurs prim arily
from the husbands' job to their w ives, but not v ice versa.
52
The mutual work arrangements of a couple matter as w ell. Jeffrey G reenhaus
and associates have found that work-fam ily conflict is greatest w hen husbands
and w ives have very different levels of job involvem ent. A nd conflict is low est
am ong couples in which both m em bers have a high level of job involvem ent.53
This suggests that if both members of a couple share a common orientation
toward work, they may be less likely to put pressure on one another to change
their arrangem ents. Problem s also arise w hen one spouse reports that his or her
career has h igher priority than his or her spouse's career .
54
Finally, Phyll is Moen
-
8/9/2019 Spillover (1).pdf
9/22
108
It's about T im e
and an u found
less
conflic t and
stress
among dual earner couples if both
members work approximately the same full-time hours but neither spouse puts
in long (m ore than forty-five) hours.55
Spillover in
The Cornell Couples
and
Careers Study
In our study, w e extend the spillover research in several w ays. First, w e focus
on workers who share a particu lar contex t: dual-earn er m iddle-class coup les. The
demands of dual careers and professional w ork in our sample provide the oppor-
tunity to exam ine spillover w hen the range and intensity of spillover are likely
to be high. W e also exam ine gender differences between m en and wom en who
face quite sim ilar p ro fessional demands at work .
Second, m ost of the conflict and interference and the spillover research has
focused on the negativ e asp ects, the strains, o f integrating work and fam ily roles,
w hereas w e consider positive as w ell as negative spillover. We also identify the
stra tegie s that dua l-e arner couple s employ to maximize the benefits and min imize
the costs of m eshing w ork and fam ily life.
Third, by taking a couple-level perspective in our spillover analyses, we
exam ine the linked lives of working m en and wom en, a dim ension m ost schol-
ars have ignored. C ouple-level research suggests that spousal behaviors, emo-
tions, an d ch aracteristics are likely to playa sign ificant role in the other spouse's
experience o f work -family sp illove r. We there fo re use in fo rma tion gathered from
both m em bers of our dual-earner couples to understand the relative levels of
spillover experienced by husbands and w ives and how the w ork experiences of
one member of a couple affect their partners' sense of spillover.
Fourth, we take a life course perspective, which gives us a snapshot of the
work and fam ily career dynam ics that occur as m en and wom en m ove through
different work and fam ily roles. Previous studies that have taken a life stage
appro ach to understanding sp illo ver h ave, w ith few excep tions, only defin ed two
life stage s: parenthood and nonpa renthood.56Our seven life -cou rse stage s permit
a better understanding of how the benefits and stresses associated w ith work and
fam ily vary across the life course for both m en and w om en.
Finally, w e exam ine the effect of a variety of work and fam ily characteristics
on spillover and the strategies that people use for m anaging work and fam ily. We
consider fam ily constraints (such as the tim e spent in household chores and
dependent care), as well as work-related variables (such as hours of work, work -
load, and control over scheduling). O f particular interest are fam ily and w ork
strategies (the use of computer technology, telecommuting, and flextim e) for
increasing th e efficien cy of running the home and /or to increase the flexibility of
work. E ach of these characteristics is m easured for both self and spouse.
-
8/9/2019 Spillover (1).pdf
10/22
Spillover
1 0 9
Methods
Our resp ondents are dual-earner co uples
(N =
811) in
The Cornell C ouples
a nd Careers Stud y (see app.). We analyze the data using basic descriptive tech-
n iques as well as repeated-measures an alysis of variance (ANOVA) and o rdinary
least squares (OLS) h ierarch ical reg ressions. We use a repeated -measu res analy -
sis o f variance rather than one-way ANOVAs because husb and and w ife spillover
scores are not independent of one another. W ith a repeated-m easures A NO VA ,
the couple is treated as the unit of analysis and husband and w ife spillover scores
are treated as separate observations w ithin the sam e unit. Previous studies have
not compared the spillover scores of husbands and w ives; rather, they have com -
pared the scores of em ployed m en and wom en, without taking into account the
specific emp loymen t circumstances o f th eir spou se.
Measures
Spillover W e use a shortened version of the spillover scale developed by
the John D . and Catherine T. M acAruthur Foundation Network on Successful
M idlife A ging. The scale assesses four types of spillover, m easuring each type
w ith tw o questions (scored on a five-point scale w here 1 equals all the tim e and
5 equals never). Item s were recoded so that a higher score represented greater
spillover. T he item s w ere then averaged to form an index.
L ife S tage
Recall, the seven life stages consist of
tw o nonparent stages: young nonparents (ages 25-39) and older nonparents
(ag es 40+ )
four stag es w ith ch ild ren in th e home: launch ing, p reschoo l-age ch ild ren (ages
0-5); early establishm ent, young school-age children (ages 6-12); later
establishmen t, adolescen ts (ages 13-18); and adult children (over 18 in the
home)
one stage that includes parents of children who are grown and have left home:
empty nes t5?
Variables Used in Regression Equations
To predict w ork-to-fam ily
spillo ver, w e exam ine sev eral work-related v ariab les. Flex ible work strateg ies
include whether the respondent utilizes (1) flexible technology that allows
w orkers to com municate w ith w ork w hile at hom e (w hether respondents regu-
larly use technology to work at home, including email, fax, beeper or cell phone,
and a portable com puter or hom e com puter), (2) telecom muting (the ability to
work at home for some portion of work time), and (3) flextime (the ability to
arrange a w ork schedule to m eet fam ily or personal needs).
-
8/9/2019 Spillover (1).pdf
11/22
110
It's abou t T ime
We assess three dim ensions related to work conditions: w orkload, schedule
contro l, and averag e week ly hou rs.
Wo rkload . T his is assessed by asking respondents whether their job requires
them to work very hard and very fast and whether they are asked to perform
excessive amounts of w ork. R esponses are recorded on a four-point scale
(from 1, strongly agree, to 4, strongly disagree).
Schedule control. This is assessed by a shortened version of a measure of
con tro l ove r a reas a t work .58The e ight-item scale measu re s whether re spon -
dents are able to determ ine when to begin and end their workday, the
number of hours they w ork, w hether w ork can be done at hom e, the tim ing
of vacations, the amount and tim ing of work that must be taken hom e on
evenings or w eekends, w hen to take a few hours off, and w hether they are
able to make or receive personal p hone calls and emails while at work. Items
are scored on a five-point scale (from 1, very little choice, to 5, very much
choice).
Average num ber of hours worked per w eek. This is assessed by the respon-
dents estim ate of the am ount of tim e, on average, spent at work, com bin-
ing all jobs.
When predicting fam ily-to-work spillover, w e consid er four fam ily-related
variables: the am ount of free tim e, the tim e spent on dependent care, the tim e
spent on household ch ores, and the time spent caring for infirm fam ily members.
W ork to Fam ily versus
Fam .ily to W ork Spillover
Our findings on the re lationsh ip between work -to -family sp illove r and family -
to -work sp illo ver are consisten t w ith p rev ious studies. S pecifically , ev en in th is
m iddle-class sample, w e find that w ork has more of a negative impact on fam ily
than fam ily has on work (see figure 7.1) for both women and men. Most em-
ployees in our study bring more w orries and stresses hom e w ith them from w ork
than they take from home to work. T o function effectively at the workplace, most
people compa rtmentaliz e their family conce rns wh ile a t work . By contra st, family
members are less effective at shielding their concerns at w ork from home. Note,
however, that on average respondents report negativ e work-to-fam ily spillo ver
som ew here betw een rarely and som etim es, m eaning that for m ost people in our
sample, negative spillover from work to home (or vice versa) is not a major issue.
Moreover, respondents in o ur study also report that, for the most part, the ben-
efits of combining work and fam ily outweigh any drawbacks (see figure 7.1). On
average, respondents report that positive spillover from fam ily to work occurs
-
8/9/2019 Spillover (1).pdf
12/22
Spillover
111
more frequently (between sometimes and most of the time) than negative
spillover. Thus, fam ily life enhances more than it hinders an individual's perfor-
m ance at work. Further, the couples in our sample report that home life enhances
w ork life to a greater degree than work life enhances hom e life.
Spillover between Husbands and W ives
P revious research on gender differences in fam ily-to-work spillover has been
conflicting, w ith no clear pattern em erging. In our sam ple, w e find that w om en
repo rt g reate r leve ls o f negative family -to -work sp illove r and g reate r leve ls o f pos-
itive fam ily-to-work spillover than do men (see figure 7.1). A lthough relatively
sma ll, th ese d iffe rences a re sta tis tically significan t. The added sta tistical power o f
our couple-level analysis may have allowed us to detect a significant difference
that w as too subtle for other studies to detect. We are not surprised to find women
reporting slightly higher levels of fam ily-to-w ork spillover than m en. In our
sample, women spend more tim e on household chores (2.6 hours vs. 1.9 hours on
w orkdays) and, am ong parents, on child care (3.9 hours vs. 2.2 hours on w ork-
days) than do m en. The added roles in the hom e, com bined w ith their w ork role is
lik ely to tran sla te in to grea te r lev els o f both positiv e and negativ e sp illo ve r.
W e do not find a significant difference betw een husbands and w ives in nega-
tive work -to-fam ily sp illo ver. This contrad ic ts prio r stud ies th at tend to show th at
w ives display greater levels of negative work-to-fam ily spillover than do hus-
bands. It m ay be that the context for w orking wom en is changing. M iddle-class
fem ale workers m ay be becom ing more adept at leaving the concerns of the work-
plac e b eh ind when they are home, d ecrea sin g nega tiv e work -to -fam ily sp illo ve r.
A t the sam e tim e, as m iddle-class m en begin to invest m ore in the roles of parent
and spouse, they may be experiencing an increase in work-to-fam ily spillover.
W e do find a small, but significant, difference between m en and women on
positiv e work -to -family spillove r (s ee figure 7 .1 ). Midd le -c la ss wives, when com-
pared to their husbands, have a greater tendency to feel that being involved in
work outside of the home enhances their effectiveness and emotional well-being
in the home. Still, the sm all, and even nonsignificant, differences that w e found
between m iddle-class husbands and w ives on spillover levels are consistent w ith
a general trend in the work-fam ily literature. A s societal attitudes shift to reflect
the changing dem ographics of the w orkforce, the differences betw een m en and
women in their orientation to work and fam ily are disappearing.59
Patterns of Spillover
P rev iously , rese arch ers h av e trea ted positiv e sp illo ver and negativ e spillo ve r
as separate processes and have not explored how positive and negative spillover
-
8/9/2019 Spillover (1).pdf
13/22
112 It's about T im e
L 2 I
N e g a ti v e S p i l l o v e r
.
P o s it i v e S p i l l o v e r
a ll o f th e t im e ( 5 )
C )
c
~
m o s t o f th e t im e ( 4 )
[ t :
. . .
G )
>
~
Q .
e n
G )
C )
f
G )
>
0
~
4. 1
en
.x:
...
0
3:
.2 3.9
.
~
.~
3.8
LL
~ 3.7 -
:;::
ii j
~
3.6 --.--
- - ~~
,~>=
-
8/9/2019 Spillover (1).pdf
19/22
118
It's about Tim e
into launching fam ilies. In our sam ple of young m arried couples w ithout chil-
dren, w ork evidently intrudes into the hom e at a relatively high rate. T hese m en
and women have few family commitments and tend not to separate their jobs
from their home lives.
In teresting ly , among dual-earn er couples, parenthood is associated w ith less
negative work-to-fam ily spillover compare9 to men and women of comparable
ages w ithout children (young nonparent and older nonparent stages). We specu-
late that the presence of children m ay act to buffer parents from the stresses at
work. Parents may be less willing to let the hassles and pressures from work
invade their life at hom e, m aking a conscious effort to separate their w ork life
from their fam ily life. C hildren m ay also act to distract parents from the issues
that they face at work. The bottom line, how ever, is that parenthood appears to
help m en and wom en achieve a greater separation of work from hom e (but not
v ice versa ). Overall, n egativ e work -to -fam ily sp illover tend s to g radually d im in -
ish across the life course. A s employees settle into their careers, they m ay learn
how to juggle work and family so that they do not interfere as much with one
ano ther. L ife stage is s tatistic ally unrelated to pos itiv e work -to -fam ily sp illover
for both m en and wom en.
Predicting Spillover
To identify which work- and home-related factors predict spillover, we
perform eight separate hierarchical regressions-four for m en (positive and
negative w ork-to-fam ily spillover and positive and negative fam ily-to-w ork
spillover) and four for w omen. E ach regression equation has three steps. First,
w e control for psychological disposition (negative affect) and life stage. For
fam ily -to-work sp illo ver, in th e second step we assess whether th e respondents'
home-re lated variab les and flexib le wo rk s tra tegie s in flu ence sp illove r. Third , we
exam ine w hether the spouse's behaviors at hom e and flexible w ork strategies
in flu ence spillover. This th ird s tep allows us to d isc ern how spouse s' o rien ta tions
to w ork and fam ily are linked to the respondents' ow n experience of spillover.
For work-to-fam ily spillover, we follow these same steps, except that in the
second and third steps w e exam ine the impact of work-related variables and flex-
ib le wo rk s tra tegies on work -to -fam ily spillover.
Predicting Fam ily-to- W ork Spillover
T he more tasks and roles that individuals perform in the hom e, the greater the
negative fam ily-to-w ork spillover. Specifically, m en who spend more tim e on
household chores, and m en and w om en w ho spend m ore hours at w ork (leaving
fewer availab le for th e home) report h ig her n eg ative fam ily-to -work spillov er. In
-
8/9/2019 Spillover (1).pdf
20/22
Spillover
119
the same vein, the more free tim e that husbands and w ives report having at home,
the lower the ir reports o f n eg ativ e fam ily-to -work sp illov er (rec all we control fo r
n eg ativ e mood and life stag e).6 2
Roles in the hom e also have im plications for positive spillover. H usbands
whose w ives care for an infirm relative report lower levels of positive fam ily-to-
w ork spillover than husbands whose w ives do not have this additional role. It is
likely that women who care for an ill relative are less available to perform house-
hold tasks and to m eet the needs of their im mediate fam ily, leaving their hus-
bands to perform some of these tasks, which then detracts from their experiences
at home. As the population ages and elder care becomes more prevalent, the
impact of care giving on worker and fam ily w ell-being w ill become a more acute
Issue.
Work strategies also impact fam ily-to-w ork spillover. T he more hours that a
w ife works, the more positive spillover reported by her husband. T his is consis-
te nt w ith previo us re se arch th at shows th at when husb ands and w ive s h av e sim ilar
high levels of commitment to work, husbands report lower levels of work-fam ily
conflict.63It m ay be that w ives w ho work relatively long hours are m ore sup-
portive of their husbands' w ork and more w illing to discuss work-related issues
in the hom e, resulting in m ore positive hom e-to-w ork spillover. The opposite
seem s to be true for w om en. W ives w hose husbands w ork relatively long hours
repo rt g reate r negativ e family -to -wo rk sp illove r. Becau se o f th eir husband 's long
hours (recall that the m en in our sample work longer hours than the women),
these w om en m ay shoulder a larger burden of hom e-related tasks, resulting in
greate r negative family -to -work spillover.
F lexib le work s tra tegie s have a paradoxical re la tionship with family -to -wo rk
spillover. Women who bring work home report higher levels of both positive and
nega tive spillo ve r. They feel bo th enhan ced and bu rd en ed by th is strategy . In con -
trast, men who brin g work home report gre ater p ositive family -to-work sp illov er
only. Am ong m en, w orking at hom e is a strategy that enhances their w ork life,
w ithout the corresponding downside that w e find w ith women. Women, w ho are
responsible for the m ajority of household tasks, m ay be overburdened at hom e
when they also have to perform work-related tasks, leading to greater fatigue and
stress in the w orkplace, w hich is not found am ong m en.
Predicting W ork-to-Fam ily Spillover
Several work-rela ted conditions s ignif icantly affect work-to-fami ly spillover .64
First, for both husbands and w ives, control over w hen and w here an individual
w orks is associated w ith higher positive spillover. O n the dow n side, a greater
work load is assoc ia ted with h igher negative work-to -family spillover. In add ition,
husbands w hose w ives have heavy w orkloads tend to have low er levels of posi-
tive work-'to-fam ily spillover. H igh workloads and a lack of control at w ork are
-
8/9/2019 Spillover (1).pdf
21/22
120
It's abou t T ime
b o th s o u r c e s o f s t r e s s fo r e m p lo y e e s , whicha p p e a r s t o n e g a t iv e ly a f f e c t w o r k e r s '
experien ces at home.
A more complicated picture emerges when we examine the relationship
betw een spillover and w orkplace strategies that are designed to facilitate the
m eshing of w ork and fam ily. For husbands and w ives, bringing w ork hom e has
the paradoxical effect of in creasing both negative and po sitive work-to-fam ily
spillover. Further, w ives whose husbands bring work home tend to report low er
po sitive work-to-fam ily spillover. T he u se of telecommuting , another strategy
touted as an aid for working fam ilies, is related to lower levels of positive
spillo ver among w ives and also among w iv es whose husband s' telecommute. T he
use of flextim e also has some negative consequences. When husbands use flex-
time , wives report lower leve ls of pos itive work-to -fami ly spillover . In te resting ly ,
the use of these fam ily-friendly policies appears to have more of a detrim ental
effect on the w ive's spillover than on the husbands'. In addition, w ives appear to
be neg atively impacted by th eir husbands' use of these fam ily-friendly policies,
but husbands are not im pacted by their w ives' use of the policies.
A lthough flexible work strategies seem to help workers cope w ith the multi-
ple dem ands of work and fam ily, they are not a panacea for the w orking couple
(especially for the w ife) but seem to be a double-edged sword. Strategies such as
b ringing work home are simu ltan eously related to enhancing and detracting from
husbands' and w ives' experien ces at work and at home. O th er flex ib le work strate-
gies, such as telecommuting and flextim e, are related to decreases in positive
spillover for women and for w ives whose husbands use these strategies.
Sum m ing Up
In this chapter, w e build on and extend prior research on spillover in several
w ays. We use a unique sample of dual-earner m iddle-class couples to show how
shared contexts an d linked lives of couples promote an understan din g of positive
and neg ative spillover b etween work and fam ily. First, the most common pattern
of spillover is Fam ily Optim al; that is, almost 60 percent of respondents report
h igh levels o f positive family -to -work sp illove r and low leve ls o f negative family -
to -work sp illover. A lthough negative family -to -work sp illove r doe s exist, it is not
a major concern of workers in our m idd le-class, largely profession al sample.
Second, m ost couples fit a symmetric m odel of spillover (e.g., low negative
spillover for both husbands and w ives), w ith husbands' and w ives' experiences
w ith sp illo ver lin ked to a g reater d eg ree th an we expected . These findings suggest
that as women become more integrated into the workforce, differences in expe-
riences between men and women are becoming smaller. The structural lag
betw een the demography of the w orkforce and the social organization of w ork
may be similar for both men and women. There are, however, a significant
-
8/9/2019 Spillover (1).pdf
22/22
Spillover
121
number of couples who have asymmetric spillover. F or example, some husbands
report low negative spillover from home to work, whereas their w ives experience
re la tiv ely h igh negative sp illove r. Ou r in te rp re ta tion is that in a substantia l m inor-
ity o f ca ses th e tradition al rela tion sh ip o f asymmetry still ex ists; tha t is, the w ive s
bear the brunt of negative spillover for both partners.
Third, life stag e play s a sign ifican t role in how much sp illo ver work ing spouses
experien ce . L ife stag e captu re s th e dynamic in te rp lay b etween ind ividu als' work
ca re ers and family careers. Husb ands and wiv es w ith the grea test fam ily demands
are more likely to report higher levels of negative fam ily-to-work spillover. This
is particularly true for the w ives in our study. Both spouses in later life stages
tend to report less negative work-to-fam ily spillover. Surprisingly, however,
am ong husbands and w ives under the age of fifty, having children in the hom e is
re la ted to le ss negative work -to -family sp illove r. These findings suggest th at chil-
dren m ay buffer their parents from the stresses of w ork.
Fourth, hom e conditions, w ork conditions, and flexible w ork strategies are
significant determ inants of spillover. C ontrol over w ork schedules appears to
enhance pos itive spillover, whereas heavie r work loads predic ts negative spillover.
Flexible work strategies have complex effects that vary for m en and women. For
both husbands and wives, bringing work home acts as a double-edged sword,
related to higher levels of both positive and negative spillover. W ives who
telecommute and w ives whose husbands telecommute, use flextime, and/or work
at home tend to experience less positive spillover from their work and home lives.
Thus, not only do women's own use of flexible work policies influence spillover,
but their husband's u se o f those polic ie s a lso a ffects sp illove r. The re fo re , a lthough
these strategies m ake it easier for couples to combine work and fam ily responsi-
bilities, they may come at a cost to w ives' (and a lesser extent to husbands') sense
of spil lover .
Note that our findings should be interpreted in the context of the sample pop-
ulation. Our sample does not include single individuals or single parents-that
is, individuals who have opted not to marry or who have more challenges as single
parents in balancing work and fam ily. In addition, although a sample of m iddle-
class couples is expected to have high work dem ands, these professionals also
have more resources than do lower-income fam ilies. F uture research, therefore,
should include a w ider range of w orkers to test w hether our results can be gen-
eralized to individuals in o th er hou sehold and econom ic c ircumstance s.
Our analysis of positive and negative spillover among dual-career couples at
different life stages provides important insights into the complexities of work-
fam ily relationships. The effects of spillover from fam ily to w ork and w ork to
fam ily heavily depend on the characteristics and strategies of the household as
w ell as the circum stances at work, for individuals and for their spouses.