Work–Life Conflict

The interface of work and nonwork (defined as activities outside of paid market labor) is studied across many disciplines, such as sociology, women’s and gender studies, communication studies, family studies, and economics in addition to industrial and organizational (I-O) psychology. This wide interest is driven in large part by the increase of women in the labor force (specifically, women with young children), expanded information and communication technologies that are changing the ways in which work is done, and changing values regarding work–life balance. One main contribution of I-O psychologists to this research is a focus on individual and organizational outcomes of work–nonwork conflict.

There are multiple approaches to the interface between work and nonwork. A conflict perspective highlights role incompatibility and the negative spillover of emotion, ...