Predictors and Outcomes of Work-Family Conflict: A U.S. and Singapore Cross-Cultural Comparison
Buswell, Lydia A.; Galovan, Adam M.; Fackrell, Tamara A.; Jones, Blake L.; Hill, E. Jeffrey; Carroll, Sarah June; Hill, Jeff
Abstract
This paper examines the predictors and outcomes of work-family conflict in a cross-cultural comparison between nationally-representative samples from the United States (N = 1870) and Singapore (N = 1035). As expected, schedule flexibility was positively related to mental health in the United States, but in Singapore the relationship was negative. Likewise, work-to-family conflict was negatively related to marital satisfaction in the United States, however, it was positively related to marital satisfaction in Singapore. Similarly, family-to-work conflict was positively related to job satisfaction in United States, but was negatively related in Singapore. The findings suggest that theoretical relationships in the work-family interface developed in the individualistic West may need to be adapted when studying populations in the collectivist East.