Work–family interface from a life and career stage perspective: The role of demands and resources

Work–family conflict and enrichment are experiences that occur daily and have substantial consequences for employees, their families, and the organizations that employ them. The aim of the current review is to make a link between life and career stage, work and family conditions, and the work–family interface. The basic proposition is that life stages partly determine career development, and consequently the specific working conditions (job demands and job resources) and family conditions (family demands and family resources) that individuals are exposed to. As a result, the specific demands and resources in the work and family domains determine to what extent individuals experience that work and family are conflicting or enriching life domains. In this review we suggest that individuals in early adulthood will experience high inter‐role conflict and low facilitation due to high demands and low resources in both life domains, while individuals in late adulthood will experience the opposite pattern; that is, low conflict and high facilitation due to low demands and high resources in both domains. Individuals in middle adulthood will experience high work–family conflict but also high family–work facilitation due to the presence of high job demands and resources in both life domains. Integrating life and career stage perspectives and the experience of work–family interface is of notable practical utility because it provides a mechanism to make more informed decisions about the relative need for and corresponding benefits of work–family programs.     

Gender and work-family conflict: testing the rational model and the gender role expectations model in the Spanish cultural context

Gutek, Searle, and Klepa (1991) proposed two models to explain the gender differences in work-family conflict: the rational model and the gender role expectations model. Both models have mostly been tested on American and Canadian samples, and have obtained partial support. Given the cultural differences between North American countries and Spain, we should question whether the two models are equally applicable to Spanish society or whether one of them captures Spanish men and women's experience of work-family conflict better than the other. So, the aim of this study is to test which of the models better explains the gender differences in work-family conflict in the Spanish cultural context (or if, indeed, the two models apply equally well). Given the typical cultural dimensions of Spanish society, we expected to find greater support for the gender role expectations model than for the rational model. However, the results obtained in this study indicated that, while the rational model can explain the gender differences that were found, the gender role expectations model cannot capture Spanish people's work-family conflict experiences. The results are interpreted in terms of cultural dimensions characteristic of the Spanish context.     

Personal and family perfectionism of Taiwanese college students: relationships with depression, self-esteem, achievement motivation, and academic grades

An increasing number of perfectionism studies have been conducted across different countries outside of the Western framework. Using an international egalitarian approach that adopts indigenous frameworks and concepts from the cultural context of the population studied is imperative. This study examines different groups of perfectionists with a sample of 348 Taiwanese college students, emphasizing the collectivistic culture. In particular, this is a follow-up study to further explore characteristics of a group with low standards/high discrepancy--a feeling that they are not good enough despite having low standards--found in a previous study with Taiwanese students. More specifically, this study investigates whether the source of the high discrepancy scores among this group is related to having higher perfectionistic standards from their family. Perfectionism was examined not only from a personal/individualistic perspective, but also from a familistic dimension to reflect Taiwanese collectivistic cultural values. Results partially supported the hypotheses--this group reported having higher family discrepancy, but not family standards, than nonperfectionists. However, this group of participants reported lower academic grades, which implies the possibility of their discrepancy being associated with poorer performance. Four cluster groups--adaptive perfectionists, maladaptive perfectionists, nonperfectionists, and those with low standards/high discrepancy--were compared on their levels of depression, self-esteem, achievement motivation, and academic grades. Maladaptive perfectionists reported the highest depression level, while adaptive perfectionists reported the highest self-esteem. Results also show that aspects of personal perfectionism and family perfectionism related to self-esteem differently among this sample. Findings and implications are discussed with consideration of the collectivistic cultural context in Taiwan.     

Family myth,the symbolic realm and the ancestors

Abstract: This paper¹ takes the shape of a diptych. The first part explores the ancestors as embodied ghosts, internal objects or as mediated through ancestral heritage, as these aspects intertwine in a Möbius strip. The second part looks at ancestral heritage and the different ways in which ‘family myth’ appears in a Jungian context and in Systemic Psychotherapy (family therapy). Both share an interface through the current paradigm shifts towards mutual reflexivity in patient and therapist and a focus on the interpersonal space. The ancestors give substance to the eternal riddle: ‘from whence do we come, who are we and where do we go’, which connects past, present and future. Our ancestors are part of our minds, perhaps in the way Damasio (2010) postulates that ancestral experiences mediated through culture shape our brains. The leitmotiv of individuation through mimesis (sameness) and alterity (difference) runs through both parts.     

Family of Origin Environment and Adolescent Bullying Predict Young Adult Loneliness

ABSTRACT

This study tested parental loneliness, family of origin environment, and a history of being bullied as predictors of loneliness in young adults. The role of social skills in young adults’ loneliness was also examined. Participants were 111 young-adult–parent dyads who completed measures of loneliness and the family communication environment. In addition, young adults completed measures of social skills and history of being bullied. Predictions were tested with structural equation modeling, path analysis, and multiple regression analysis. Results showed that parental loneliness and a history of being bullied were each significant predictors of young adult loneliness. A family environment that supported open communication was negatively associated with young adults’ loneliness. Parental loneliness and a history of being bullied each had direct effects on young adults’ loneliness as well as indirect effects through reduced social skills.     

Social identity and prosocial and antisocial behavior in youth sport

ObjectivesTo examine (a) the effects of social identity on prosocial and antisocial behavior toward teammates and opponents, and (b) whether any effects of social identity on prosocial and antisocial behavior were mediated by cohesion.DesignProspective, observational.MethodsMale and female youth–sport participants (N = 329; M_age = 15.88 years) completed questionnaires at the beginning, middle and end of the season assessing three dimensions of social identity (cognitive centrality, ingroup ties, ingroup affect), cohesion (task, social) and prosocial and antisocial behavior toward teammates and opponents.ResultsWith the exception of cognitive centrality (which was therefore not analyzed further), all measures of study variables proved reliable. Structural equation modeling indicated the following: Ingroup affect had a positive effect on prosocial teammate behavior, Task cohesion mediated a positive effect of ingroup ties on prosocial teammate behavior and a negative effect of ingroup ties and ingroup affect on antisocial behavior toward teammates and opponents. Social cohesion mediated a positive effect of ingroup ties on antisocial behavior toward teammates and opponents. Prosocial opponent behavior was not predicted by any dimension of social identity.ConclusionThe findings highlight that social identity may play a salient role in regulating prosocial and antisocial behavior in youth sport, and changes in cohesion may partially explain these effects.     

Perpetuating Stereotypes: A Study of Gender,Family, and Religious Life in Jewish Children's Books

This paper examines award‐winning Jewish children's literature as a medium to explore how religiosity gets constructed differently for men and women. We analyze three decades of winners of the Sydney Taylor Jewish Book Award, a prestigious annual award given by the Association of Jewish Libraries to an outstanding Jewish children's book. We demonstrate how these award‐winning books produce and perpetuate gendered religious stereotypes that associate men with agency and women with communion. We also show how these books construct images of a “domestic Judaism” for women and a “public Judaism” for men and how women have been symbolically annihilated from the titles and central character roles in these books. Drawing on Cecilia Ridgeway's ( 2011 ) gender‐framing perspective, we argue that the gender stereotypes evident in these books matter to society because they produce and enforce gender inequalities in religiousness.     

The role of personal and key resources in the family‐to‐work enrichment process

Based on the work‐home resources model, the aim of the present research was to test a process model of family‐to‐work enrichment by examining whether self‐efficacy (i.e., personal resource) mediates the relationship between support from one's family and work engagement. Further, it was assumed that positive affectivity (i.e., key resource) moderates the relation between family support and self‐efficacy. Using an occupationally heterogeneous sample of Slovenian employees (n = 738), we found support for a mediating effect of self‐efficacy as well as for the moderating role of positive affectivity. In general, our results broaden the understanding of work‐family enrichment processes and provide support for the work‐home resources model. In addition, they point to the relevant role of personal and key resources in work‐family interactions.     

Patient‐focused research supported practices in an intensive family therapy unit

The aim of this study is to explain how families evaluate and describe the use of two measures, the session rating scale and the outcome rating scale, in order to monitor therapeutic work. This study is methodologically based on modifications of methodical hermeneutics and consensual qualitative research. The results confirm the feasibility of these scales although some difficulties were identified. The analysis of the family interviews identified four conversational processes: communicating, focusing, structuring and exploration. These arise through the application of the scales, indicating their usefulness as conversational tools. In general, it is suggested that all the measurements and tools applied can be seen as therapeutic tools that are especially useful for establishing conversations and strengthening collaboration between service users and therapists. This brings the practice of monitoring therapeutic work into close contact with postmodern‐oriented forms of therapy.