An Analysis of the Relationship between Personnal Attributes and Work-Family Conflict
While prior research shows that contextual variables (that is family, job and organizational characteristics) influence the ability of individuals to reconcile work and family, the impact of personal or dispositional attributes is still relatively unknown. We pursue this knowledge gap in two ways. First, we investigate how four personal attributes – self-leadership, type A personality, work commitment and family commitment – influence the work-family conflict (WFC). Second, we assess the moderating effect of these four personal attributes on the relation between work and family characteristics and the WFC. Our questionnaire-based study relies on respondents from two samples (N = 1,398 and N = 532). Bivariate analyses suggest the existence of a negative relation between self leadership and the two types of work-family conflicts (W→F and F→W), even after controlling for gender and age. Multivariate analyses show that self leadership significantly contributes to explaining the W→F conflict. In addition, a Type A personality appears to be the individual attribute that best explains the W→F conflict. A Type A personality also plays a moderating role in the relation between work and family attributes and the W→F conflict. More specifically, an employee who has a Type A personality will devote more time at work and, hence, will be more likely to experience a W→F conflict. Finally, employees who express a stronger work engagement bearing important family responsibilities are more likely to experience a F→W conflict. From a theoretical perspective, the study provides some support for the role of personal dispositions in explaining WFC. From a practical perspective, practitioners responsible for promoting work–family balance should devise multilevel interventions (individual as well as contextual). Similarly, employees must face the reality of their own dispositions and make work and family choices that are consistent and coherent with them.