Convergence between measures of work-to-family and family-to-work conflict: A meta-analytic examination

The overlap between measures of work-to-family (WFC) and family-to-work conflict (FWC) was meta-analytically investigated. Researchers have assumed WFC and FWC to be distinct, however, this assumption requires empirical verification. Across 25 independent samples (total N = 9079) the sample size weighted mean observed correlation was .38 and the reliability corrected correlation was .48. The pattern of external correlates for the two types of conflict was also examined. Both forms of conflict had similar (.41) reliability corrected correlations with measures of organizational withdrawal. WFC conflict correlated .41 (k =  15, N = 4714) with job stressors and .17 (k = 13, N = 3312) with non-work stressors whereas FWC conflict correlated .27 with job stressors and .23 with non-work stressors. Correlations between the two forms of work/family conflict and other variables such as organizational commitment, job and life satisfaction, and health were examined. Implications for the discriminant validity of the two types of conflict measures are discussed.     

The mediating influence of role stressors in the relationship between mentoring and job attitudes

This study investigated the influence of two role stressors—role ambiguity and role conflict—on previously established relationships between mentoring activities—vocational support, psychosocial support, and role modeling—and prominent job attitudes. Full and partial mediation models were tested with a sample of 355 protégés. Results showed that both role conflict and role ambiguity completely mediated the relationships between psychosocial support and role modeling with job attitudes. There was also support for role conflict as a partial mediator of the relationship between vocational support and job attitudes. Additional analyses revealed that psychosocial support served as a suppressor-variable in this study. Implications for future research and mentoring practice are discussed.     

Theory and Method of Marriage Therapy in Contemporary Africa

This paper describes the theory and practice of marriage therapy in use by the author in his marital therapy process across two regions of Africa. The approach is grounded on an inclusive theoretical perspective inspired by the notion of the basic virtues of a healthy marriage as understood in Africa, and the place of the role theory approach in intervening between opposing parties. The theme developed is that a viable contemporary African marriage therapy practice is derivable from this indigenous model. The major discussion highlights the key guiding orientations and processes in implementing such a practice. A comparative view of the Euro-American emphasis in couple therapy is presented as a background for identifying the difference between the Western and the African perspectives.An initial version of the paper was presented as a Guest Lecture to the members of Staff and Graduate Students of the School of Psychology of the University of KwaZulu-Natal, in Durban, South Africa. The author is grateful to Prof. Inge Petersen and her team of staff of the school for their invitation and encouragement.     

The moderating role of work pressure on the relationships between emotional demands and tension,exhaustion, and work engagement: an experience sampling study among nurses

The purpose of this study is to examine the moderating role of state work pressure (conceived as a hindrance demand) on the relationships between situational emotional demands (conceived as a challenge demand) and tension, emotional exhaustion and work engagement within nursing while considering job resources as covariates. Ninety-seven nurses from two German hospitals provided 1026 measurements. Multilevel analyses indicated a significant Work Pressure × Emotional Demands interaction for emotional exhaustion, with high situational work pressure exacerbating the positive association between state emotional demands and emotional exhaustion. Furthermore, work pressure moderated the relationship between emotional demands and vigour: state emotional demands related negatively to vigour only when work pressure was higher than usual, while the relationship was non-significant when work pressure was lower than usual. For dedication, similar results were obtained: state emotional demands were negatively associated with dedication only when combined with high situational work pressure; with low situational work pressure, state emotional demands did not relate to dedication. Contributing to the job demands-resources literature, this study shows that there are stress-exacerbating and stress-buffering interactions between different job demands from a within-subject perspective. However, we did not find positive relationships between challenge demands and work engagement, even in the case of low situational hindrances, indicating that there are conditions for the functioning of job demands as a challenge beyond hindrances.     

2001 INVITED ADDRESS: The Mystery of Human Context and Coping: An Unraveling of Clues

Community and clinical psychology share a fundamental focus: to understand the interplay between human contexts, coping, and adaptation. To highlight recent progress in this area, I offer a guiding conceptual framework and discuss 8 propositions about environment and coping. The propositions consider such issues as patterns of social climate and coping and their links to personal development and dysfunction, the connections between ongoing life circumstances and intervention programs, the role of personal characteristics in matching individuals and environments, and the value of placing specific settings in an ecological context. I then focus on 8 enigmas, such as how to identify conceptually unifying dimensions of diverse social contexts, how to model the processes involved in person–environment transactions, how to understand the link between adversity and personal growth, how to examine the generality of models across ethnic and cultural groups, and how to enhance positive carryover from intervention programs to ongoing life contexts. I close by addressing some implications of these issues for a vision of a dynamic community psychology.     

Sequential Tree Analysis of Work Stressors: Exploring Score Profiles in the Context of the Stressor-Stress Relationship

In recent years concerns about whether the different measures of work stressors provide adequate information on the stressors themselves have led a number of reviewers to suggest that old constructs should be reconsidered and alternative approaches to measurement considered. One such alternative approach would be to consider the relationship between different work stressors in terms of score profiles and whether different score profiles emerge at different levels of tension. Sequential tree analysis was used to segment or split a sample into homogeneous subgroups reflecting the stressor or combination of stressors that reflected different levels of tension. The visual display that emerged from this analysis suggests that: (1) when considering the relationship between stressors and tension it is important to recognize that while absolute levels of work stressors scores may be low this is no reason to assume that the stressor-tension relationship will be correspondingly low; and (2) although individuals may report the same overall score for a work stressor, their experience of that stressor may be quite different. Finally, these results point to the need to consider the impact that generalizing work stressor scores may have on intervention strategies.     

Posttraumatic stress disorder and psychosocial functioning within two samples of MVA survivors

To examine criterion F variables of PTSD, the psychosocial functioning of two samples of motor vehicle accident (MVA) survivors was investigated. Within each sample, comparisons between MVA survivors with and without PTSD were conducted on four psychosocial functioning indices at three time points. In addition, the relationships between specific PTSD symptom clusters and psychosocial functioning indices were examined. The study revealed that, in general, MVA survivors with PTSD evidenced poorer psychosocial functioning than did survivors without PTSD. The emotional numbing symptoms of PTSD emerged as the most consistent predictors of the psychosocial functioning indices. The implications of these findings to the comprehensive treatment of PTSD are discussed.     

不同干预方式、不同应激源对血压、心率的影响

探讨不同干预方式、不同应激源对血压、心率影响的差异。被试为本科生48人,采取干预方式、应激源、实验间期的三因素混合实验设计。干预方式为放松训练和预知,应激源为心算和恐怖影片。实验间期包括基线期、干预期、应激期、恢复期。实验的因变量为每个实验间期的血压和心率。结果显示,心算应激引起的血压和心率升高显著高于恐怖影片应激引起的血压和心率的升高;放松训练组和预知组其干预期的血压和心率值都低于基线期;干预方式和应激源在血压和心率两个指标上交互作用不显著。结果表明,与恐怖情绪引起的紧张相比较,智力操作紧张更容易影响血压和心率;放松训练和预知对于对抗应激时血压和心率升高都起到了一定的作用;不同干预方式对于不同性质的应激源作用没有差别。     

A model of stress and coping and their influence on individual and organizational outcomes

A model of coping with stress is proposed in which coping mediates the relationship among organizational stressors and personal characteristics, and job-related strains and organizational outcomes. Study results, based on a sample of professional salespeople, provide overall support for most of the hypothesized relationships among work-related stressors, personal characteristics, and coping styles. Findings also support the influence of emotion-focused coping on the psychological outcomes of emotional exhaustion and job-induced anxiety; which in turn are found to influence job satisfaction and intention to withdraw. While problem-focused coping had no effect on job-induced anxiety, problem-focused coping did effect emotional exhaustion, which in turn influences job satisfaction and intention to withdraw. Minor differences were found when the proposed model was applied to saleswomen versus salesmen. Overall, however, the model was robust across both genders.     

The Influence of Supervisor and Supervisee Matching, Role Conflict, and Supervisory Relationship on Supervisee Satisfaction

In this study we explore how the “match” between supervisor and supervisee on contextual variables affects both conflict and the working alliance, which affects supervisee satisfaction. Participants included 132 supervisees in academic programs nationwide. The extent of match between supervisor and supervisee characteristics was not found to impact conflict, the working alliance, or supervisees’ satisfaction with supervision. Working alliance was highly predictive of supervisee satisfaction. Despite the findings that match was not related to working alliance or satisfaction, we believe that supervisors should still have open discussions with supervisees about their similarities and differences.