Work–life balance and life satisfaction among the self-employed

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shawn Best ◽  
Ravi Chinta
Keyword(s):  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Firm Size ◽  
Work Life ◽  
The Self ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Life Balance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Usa ◽  
High Level ◽  
Relationship Of

PurposeThe self-employed are an essential segment of society who contribute to economic growth and stabilisation in their communities. Therefore, it is crucial to investigate whether they enjoy a work–life balance (WLB) and life satisfaction (LS), which are two separate concerns of the self-employed in this study. Existing literature indicates that household income (HI) is a significant determinant of WLB and LS. This study investigates the levels and relationship of WLB and LS among the self-employed in the USA and the possible influence of HI on this relationship.Design/methodology/approachData are from an online panel survey of 435 self-employed persons residing in the USA. The authors test the hypotheses via regression analysis and ANOVA.FindingsThis study revealed that WLB is a significant predictor of LS for the self-employed. Further, it showed that HI has a statistically significant direct effect on LS and moderates the relationship between WLB and LS. Among the control variables, only firm size was seen to contribute positively to a high level of LS. Gender, education, age, the number of dependent children, industry and hours worked were not found to be statistically significant. The study also found that WLB was most important in predicting LS of the self-employed followed by HI and then firm size.Originality/valueThis study is among the first to investigate the relations between WLB and LS among the self-employed and extends the scant existing scholarship on this issue.

Different strokes for different folks? The impact of heterogeneity in work characteristics and country contexts on work-life balance among the self-employed

2016 ◽  
Vol 22 (6) ◽  
pp. 880-902 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne Annink ◽  
Laura Den Dulk ◽  
José Ernesto Amorós
Keyword(s):  
Personal Responsibility ◽  
Job Demands ◽  
Work Life ◽  
The Self ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Work Characteristics ◽  
Life Balance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the effect of self-employed work characteristics (consumer orientation, innovativeness, number of employees, motivation, and entrepreneurial phase) on work-life balance (WLB) satisfaction. Design/methodology/approach The job demands and resources approach is applied to test whether self-employed work characteristics are evaluated as job demands or resources for WLB. The Global Entrepreneurship Data (2013) offer a unique opportunity to conduct multilevel analysis among a sample of self-employed workers in 51 countries (N=11,458). Besides work characteristics, this paper tests whether country context might explain variation in WLB among the self-employed. Findings The results of this study reveal that there is a negative relation between being exposed to excessive stress and running a consumer-oriented business and WLB. Being motivated out of opportunity is positively related to WLB. In addition, the results indicate that country context matters. A higher human development index and more gender equality are negatively related to WLB, possibly because of higher social expectations and personal responsibility. The ease of doing business in a country was positively related to the WLB of self-employed workers. Social implications For some workers self-employment might be a way to combine work and responsibilities in other life domains, but this does not seem to be valid in all cases. Originality/value This paper contributes to current literature on the WLB of self-employed workers by showing how work characteristics can be evaluated as job demands or resources. Including work characteristics in future research might be a solution for acknowledging the heterogeneity among self-employed workers.

Executive chefs’ calling: effect on engagement, work-life balance and life satisfaction

2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (5) ◽  
pp. 2287-2307 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa Cain ◽  
James Busser ◽  
Hee Jung (Annette) Kang
Keyword(s):  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Employee Engagement ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Role Theory ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Annual Conference ◽  
Life Balance ◽  
Content Type

PurposeThis paper aims to understand the relationships among calling, employee engagement, work-life balance and life satisfaction for executive chefs based on role theory and spillover theory.Design/methodology/approachSurveys were completed by members of the American Culinary Federation in North America, the Nevada Restaurant Association and attendees at the ChefConnect Annual Conference. The data were analysed with confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling.FindingsAll relationships in the model were significantly positive except for calling to life satisfaction. Importantly work-life balance was a significant mediator between calling and life satisfaction as well as for employee engagement and life satisfaction.Research limitations/implicationsThe research provides a more comprehensive framework for hospitality scholars to understand the outcomes of work as a calling through meaningfulness. The sample of executive chef limits generalizability.Practical implicationsThe identification of a calling through in-depth interviews is recommended. Once recognized, managers should further foster chef’s passion through employee engagement facilitated by workplace autonomy and continuing education and work-life balance supported with human resource management practices including time off for critical life events. This will allow calling to flourish, increase life satisfaction and reduce the likelihood of turnover and burnout.Originality/valueOutcomes reveal the complexity of the relationship between calling and life satisfaction. Contrary to previous findings, the presence of positive work-life balance was critical to attain life satisfaction, even when work was viewed as a calling.

Finding effective ways to address work-family conflict

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Turnover Intentions ◽  
Supervisor Support ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Psychological Resources ◽  
Work Family Conflict ◽  
Life Balance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Work Family

Purpose An unhealthy work-life balance is a major cause of turnover intentions among the workforce. Firms can effectively address the issue by ensuring that supervisor support is available to replenish physical and psychological resources and help increase levels of job and life satisfaction for employees. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings An unhealthy work-life balance is a major cause of turnover intentions among the workforce. Firms can effectively address the issue by ensuring that supervisor support is available to replenish physical and psychological resources and help increase levels of job and life satisfaction for employees. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

Perceived work–life balance and organizational talent management: mediating role of employer branding

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kamlesh Kumar Maurya ◽  
Manisha Agarwal ◽  
Dhirendra Kumar Srivastava
Keyword(s):  
Human Resource ◽  
Talent Management ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Employer Branding ◽  
Life Balance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship

PurposeThis paper aims to examine the effect of perceived work–life balance on the perceived level of employer branding attraction valueand organizational talent management. Accordingly, the structural model is developed that delineates the interactions among these and explores the mediating effect of employer branding attraction value between the relationship of work–life balance and organizational talent management.Design/methodology/approachThis study is based on survey results and review of literature in terms of their implications for the proposed framework. Data have been collected by convenience incidental sampling from middle-level executives working in different information and technology (IT) companies. The model and posited hypotheses were tested through structural equation modeling analysis.FindingsPerceived work–life balance was found to be positive and significantly predicted the employer branding attraction value and organizational talent management. The study also showed that there exists a significant and positive correlation between employer branding attraction value and perceived organizational talent management. Further, employer branding attraction value found to be a mediating construct between the relationship of work–life balance and organizational talent management.Research limitations/implicationsThe present study will add insight into the human resource practitioners to design cost-effective and prolonged popular practices in order to meet the employees work and personal expectations under the organizational association. The research investigated issue within focused IT sector employees to understand and solve the issues generated with changing factors in an organizational environment such as increasing women participation, duel earning couple, and maintaining the difference between various categories of employees at the practice level.Social implicationsThe study has value at both the scholarly and practice level. At a scholarly level, the research investigated an important contemporary issue at both level individual as well as organizational level. In practice if organization implements people friendly work-life balance policies, then this will be surely be helpful in organizational productivity in form of talent management and employer branding and further this will improve the personal and professional performance of most elementary component of developing society.Originality/valueWork–life balance much more depends upon employees' perception, but so far the study has neglected the impact of this perception on other organizational attributes maintained under human resource management. Changes in demographic characteristics and interchangeable role of the youth population in organizations and society as well thrive for the newer approach to deal with the personal and professional aspects of the employees.

The Mediating Effect of Happiness on the Relationship between Work-Life Balance and Life Satisfaction: An Empirical Study on Employees of Malaysian Financial Industry

2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 33
Author(s):  
Siti Hartini Najamudin ◽  
Muhamad Khalil Omar ◽  
Azzarina Zakaria
Keyword(s):  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Mediating Effect ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Financial Industry ◽  
Life Balance ◽  
Mediating Role ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

The issue of happiness in organisation has been debated among academicians, practitioners, and policy makers nowadays. This is because it provides an index of how well things are going     within the organisational context. The ability for an organisation to track front-line employee’s happiness over time is a very useful in order to achieve organisation’s successful policies and practices. Some previous studies conducted to measure the relationship contribute of work-life balance effects in quality in life, life satisfaction and wellbeing. Also, the impact of decreased income on           happiness has hardly been studied except  through the drop in income due to unemployment. Therefore, this paper attempts to show the relationship of work-life balance and life satisfaction with the mediating role of happiness. The main problem is to relate the situation to the Malaysian Financial Sector work-life balance with sense of happiness by World Happiness Report to get the outcomes of life satisfaction. Perhaps for these reasons, towards the end of this paper, happiness is proposed to be measured in mediating concept by linking the relationship of work-life balance and life satisfaction. Keywords: work-life balance, happiness, life satisfaction

Work Life Balance Of Female Crew In The Aviation Industry: A Case Study

GIS Business ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (6) ◽  
pp. 206-212
Author(s):  
Dr. D. Shoba ◽  
Dr. G. Suganthi
Keyword(s):  
Family Life ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Aviation Industry ◽  
Life Balance ◽  
International Airport ◽  
Work Pressure ◽  
Women Employees ◽  
High Level

Employees and employers are facing issues in work life balance. It has become a difficult domain now, because the work needs have increased due to an increase in work pressure and complexities in handling the technology. As there are drastic changes in the rules and regulations in the work scenario of the aviation industry, it makes work life balance of employees difficult and set more hurdles. Hence there are many distractions and imbalances in the life of women employees in the aviation industry working across all levels. This work pressure is creating high level of hurdles in maintaining a harmonious job and family life, especially for female aviation employees. Data is collected from 50 female crew members working at Cochin International Airport. The objective of this study is to analyze the work life balance of working females of Cochin International Airport and its influence on their personal and specialized lives. The result of the study shows that the management should frame certain policies which will help employees to have the balance among their personal and expert lives.

Supportive supervisor to curtail turnover intentions: do employee engagement and work–life balance play any role?

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Raminderpreet Kaur ◽  
Gurpreet Randhawa
Keyword(s):  
Employee Engagement ◽  
Indirect Effects ◽  
Turnover Intentions ◽  
Supervisor Support ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Personal Life ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Life Balance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Perceived Supervisor Support

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of employee engagement and work–life balance in perceived supervisor support and turnover intentions relationship.Design/methodology/approachThe perception of teachers on the constructs considered has been assessed by a survey using a structured questionnaire. Data were collected from the teachers of private schools of Punjab, India, and 375 were valid number of responses. Parallel multiple mediated regression was used to estimate the direct and indirect effects of perceived supervisor support on turnover intentions mediated through employee engagement and work–life balance.FindingsThe results reveal that the effect of perceived supervisor support on turnover intentions is indirect rather than direct. On the comparison of specific indirect effects, the results demonstrate that employee engagement and two dimensions of work–life balance (work interference with personal life and work–personal life enhancement) act as mediators in the perceived supervisor support and turnover intentions relationship.Practical implicationsSchool principals need to draft teacher-friendly policies for enhancing work–life balance and employee engagement so that teachers can feel satisfied with their work and can handle work and family demands. In this way, positive perceptions associated with high engagement and work–family balance can take place, which in turn can curtail the turnover intentions of teachers.Originality/valueThe use of employee engagement and work-life balance in the relationship of perceived supervisor support and turnover intentions is unprecedented. The study also considered three different dimensions of work–life balance and tested the model in an integrative manner. Since the study is based on an Indian sample, it also adds to growing literature on turnover intentions in nonwestern countries. The results are of great value to school managements, HR managers and policymakers who are seeking to develop practices that reduce employee turnover at workplaces.

scholarly journals The experiences of work-life balance, stress, and coping lifestyles of female professionals: insights from a developing country

2020 ◽  
Vol 42 (4) ◽  
pp. 999-1015
Author(s):  
Babatunde Akanji ◽  
Chima Mordi ◽  
Hakeem Adeniyi Ajonbadi
Keyword(s):  
Health Sector ◽  
Geographical Location ◽  
Stress And Coping ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Medical Doctors ◽  
Life Balance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Work Family ◽  
And Coping

PurposeGiven the limiting conditions of the gender roles confronting professional working women and drawing on spillover theory, the purpose of this paper is to explore the experiences of work-life balance with an emphasis on the causes of the imbalances, perceived stress, and coping techniques experienced by female medical doctors in an African context – Nigeria, a geographical location that is considered under-researched.Design/methodology/approachThe qualitative data is based on one-to-one in-depth interviews with 52 Nigerian female medical doctors.FindingsBased on the findings of the thematic analysis, it is clear that time squeeze, as a well-known factor in the medical profession, exacerbates negative work-home interference. However, other themes, such as patriarchal proclivities and task-pay disparity, that affect female doctors but are rarely considered in studies on work-life balance also emerged as sources of stress and work-family conflicts, leaving these doctors to devise individual coping methods as mitigating strategies.Research limitations/implicationsThe study relies on a limited qualitative sample size, which makes the generalisation of findings difficult. However, the study contributes to the limited literature on the implications of stress and work-family incompatibilities facing women in a society that is not particularly egalitarian, with an extremely pronounced culture of masculine hegemony that is contrary to western cultures. The article unveils the socio-cultural difficulties of the work-life demands facing women specific to the Nigerian society and experienced with a different level of intensity.Originality/valueThe majority of the research on work-life balance has been undertaken in western countries and has focused on various professional groups and organisations, including the health sector. Nevertheless, work-life balance is a novel concept within the Nigerian work environment, where female medical doctors, as a professional group, are rarely studied. The article also provides valuable insights into the macro-contextual features influencing the work-life balance of Nigerian professional women.

COVID-19: prevalence of job-demands, stress, work–life difficulties and work–life balance among international business travelers

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vilmante Kumpikaite-Valiuniene ◽  
Luisa Helena Pinto ◽  
Tahir Gurbanov
Keyword(s):  
International Business ◽  
Job Demands ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Life Balance ◽  
Business Travel ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Business Travelers ◽  
Perceived Change ◽  
Stress Work

PurposeInternational business travelers (IBTs) face daily challenges pertaining to the frequency and duration of travel. Following the outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), the study aims to draw upon the job demands-resources (JD-R) model and the literature on work–life balance (WLB) to examine how this crisis have disrupted IBTs routines and the implications for their WLB.Design/methodology/approachData were collected in April 2020 with an online survey answered by 141 IBTs from different locations. The first set of analyses examined the perceived change in job-demands (i.e. business travel and workload) including stress and work–life difficulties following the outbreak of COVID-19. The second set of analyses tested the hypotheses that the perceived change in workload and stress predict IBTs' work–life difficulties, which, in turn, affect their WLB.FindingsThe results show that the decline in job-demands (i.e. business travel and workload) after the outbreak of COVID-19 was not enough to reduce IBTs' stress and ameliorate their work–life difficulties and WLB. Only respondents who experienced a decrease in workload, including less relational difficulties, reported a superior WLB.Originality/valueThe study widens the scope and relevance of global mobility studies in crisis settings by timely reporting the changes in job-demands, stress and work–life difficulties among IBTs following the outbreak of COVID-19. Additionally, the research extends the use of the JD-R model in the international context by advancing our knowledge of the interplay between contextual demands and job-demands in affecting IBTs' stress, work–life difficulties and WLB.

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