Patterns of Shared Religious Attendance and Positive Stepfamily Functioning

This study used data from Add Health to examine the relationship between shared participation in religious activities and positive stepfamily functioning as indicated by the closeness of the stepfather–stepchild bond, the closeness of the mother–child bond, the quality of the mother–stepfather relationship, the adolescent's perception of family belonging, and the stability of the mother–stepfather marriage. The study incorporated information on shared religious participation between adolescents and their mothers and stepfathers by examining whether adolescents reported frequently attending religious services or church‐related events with both parents, with one parent, or with neither parent. Shared religious attendance was positively associated with several aspects of stepfamily functioning above and beyond the positive association of family members’ engagement in other types of shared activities.     

Adoptive Family Adjustment and Its Relation to Perceived Family Environment

ABSTRACT

Fifty-one adopted college students from three mid-sized East Coast universities participated in interviews structured to gather information regarding adoptees' perceptions of adoptive family life. Additionally, subjects completed a scale which measured their perceptions of general characteristics of family environment. Multiple regression analysis revealed that of ten adoption-specific factors derived from interview data, overall satisfaction with one's adoptive status and family life was the strongest predictor of perceived general family environment. Adoptee satisfaction predicted high levels of family expressiveness, ethical focus and involvement in shared activities as well as low levels of family conflict. Adoptees' perception of adoptive fathers' and mothers' communication styles predicted different aspects of family environment. Adoptees' acknowledgment of life differences due to their adoptive status did not relate to family expressiveness. The latter finding lends support to recent research suggesting that acknowledgment and expressiveness are independent aspects of adoptive family functioning.     

Birthday celebrations as a family homelessness intervention: a mixed-methods analysis

Families report that the experience of homelessness presents a significant barrier to family functioning and interrupts regular family routines. This study uses data from 22 homeless shelters in Massachusetts to examine the relationship between birthday parties for homeless children, family functioning, and parent well-being in homeless families. The study includes a sample of 255 residents across 20 homeless shelters in both urban and rural communities that received regular monthly birthday parties from a nonprofit agency. A small comparison sample of 25 residents came from two shelters that were not receiving birthday parties from the nonprofit agency. Data from 78 staff members working at all 22 shelters was collected on shelter environment and resident cohesion. Results indicated that residents in those shelters that received monthly birthday party celebrations for children had higher levels of happiness. Residents’ satisfaction with the birthday parties showed correlations between levels of hope, happiness, and parental empowerment. Shelter staff who reported higher levels of satisfaction with birthday parties also reported higher levels of resident cohesion. Results point toward the value of continuing regular family routines, such as annual birthday celebrations, to help mitigate the stressors and disruptions of homelessness on families.     

Community Attachment,Religious Participation,and Quality of Life Satisfaction among Adults Involved in Civic Participation

Civic participation constitutes a range of activities that strengthen participatory democracy, such as voting, volunteerism, association membership, or political and community activism. Factors associated with civic participation are community attachment, religious participation, and quality of life satisfaction. Using a sample of 55 adults, ages 18 to 92 years, the results indicate that this is an engaged sample group in the volunteer arena with high religious attendance, attachment to their communities, and average satisfaction with their quality of life as outcomes of their civic participation.     

Satisfaction and role quality perceptions of farm women employed off the farm

The purpose of the study is to examine the relationships among perceptions of role quality on the farm and in the family, perceived financial need to work off the farm, and satisfaction with the balance of time away from and with family members for 187 employed farm women. Role quality perception variables measure the gap farm women experienced between actual and ideal farm and family roles. The perceived financial need to work is considered a constraint to satisfaction and an influence on role quality. OLS regression is the primary data-analysis technique. Employed farm women with large households are less satisfied with the balance of time away from and with family members. Those employed farm women who perceived a larger gap between their actual and ideal family roles are less satisfied with the balance between time away from and with family members.Her research interests include family decision making, labor force participation of women, and standards and levels of living.Her research interests are family work and environmental values in family decision making.     

THE PARADOX OF THE CONTENTED FEMALE WORKER IN A TRADITIONALLY FEMALE INDUSTRY

Small support groups are a relatively new form of voluntary association appearing in the American landscape. Examining the larger implications of the “small group movement” for civic life has led some to see an overall positive effect on wider community activities, while others have viewed small-group participants as self-absorbed and withdrawing from participation in civic activities. Using a national sample of small-group participants, we examine the effects on civic engagement stemming from the social characteristics of participants, the type of small group (religious, secular, or mixed), and the opportunity to develop social capital through participation in small groups. Findings indicate that members of religious small groups do not actively engage in civic affairs, but members of secular and mixed groups do participate in a broad range of civic activities. Differences in social participation can be attributed to characteristics of the small groups (formalization and cohesion) and to some characteristics of members (education). When small support groups offer members the opportunity to acquire civic skills, to exchange information, and to develop self-efficacy, there is more interest and activity in civic affairs.     

The Effects of Work and Community Resources and Demands on Family Integration

This paper uses interviews with 1,156 married dual-earner parents of children aged 10–17 from the 1992–1994 National Survey of Families and Households to examine relationships between work and community resources and demands and two aspects of family integration: activities with adolescents and family cohesion. The results indicate that mothers' shorter paid work hours and fathers' lower participation in community-professional organizations and moderate and high levels of informal helping are positively related to activities with adolescents, whereas moderate and high levels of participation in organized youth activities are positively related to family integration. Community-based subjective resources are positively related to family integration, whereas work-based subjective demands are negatively related to family cohesion. The findings generally are similar for mothers and fathers.     

Cohesion and Enmeshment Revisited: Differentiation,Identity, and Well‐Being in Two European Cultures

We examined the nature and implications of family differentiation among adolescents facing a life transition in 2 European countries with differing family cultures. One hundred and twenty‐four Italian and 109 U.K. adolescents completed measures of family differentiation (cohesion and enmeshment), identity threat (perception of threat to the self associated with finishing school), life satisfaction, depressive symptoms, and anxiety. Confirmatory factor analyses showed that cohesion and enmeshment were distinguishable in both countries, orthogonal in the U.K. but positively correlated in Italy. Family cohesion was associated with better psychological well‐being in both countries; enmeshment was associated with poorer psychological well‐being in the U.K. but not in Italy. Structural equation models showed that effects on well‐being were fully mediated by identity threat in both cultures.     

Self- and Spouse-Reported Work–Family Conflict and Dual-Earners’ Job Satisfaction

We add to the literature on job satisfaction by examining the role played by self-reported and spouse-reported work–family conflict for dual-earner husbands and wives (N = 156 couples, 312 individuals), a contagion model of work and family. Two path models of job satisfaction were tested: a spillover model, including the respondent's work-to-family conflict and family-to-work conflict, and a crossover model, including the spouse's perception of the respondent's work-to-family conflict. Workplace and family/respondent characteristics were also included in the models. For wives, job satisfaction is associated with family-to-work conflict (spillover). For husbands, job satisfaction is associated with his spouse's perception of his work-to-family conflict (crossover). For both husbands and wives, coworker support is both directly and indirectly associated with job satisfaction.     

Communicatively Managing Religious Identity Difference in Parent-Child Relationships: The Role of Accommodative and Nonaccommodative Communication

Guided by Communication Accommodation Theory, we examine the communicative management of religious difference in parent-child relationships. Using survey data from emerging adults (N = 409), we found that religious difference is associated with decreases in relational satisfaction and shared family identity. Further, parents’ religious communication has the potential to promote relational well-being. Accommodative communication (religious-specific supportive communication and respecting divergent values) was associated with increases in relational satisfaction and shared family identity. Two forms of nonaccommodative communication (inappropriate self-disclosure and emphasizing divergent values) were associated with decreases with relational satisfaction and shared family identity; giving unwanted advice was associated with decreases in relational satisfaction but not shared family identity. Giving unwanted advice moderated the relationship between religious difference and relational satisfaction. Differences were also discovered between families with inter- and intrafaith parental dyads. Findings suggest theoretical and methodological contributions to family communication, religious, and intergroup research.     

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! The impact of Christmas rituals on subjective well-being and family's emotional climate

Abstract

This study assessed subjective well-being before and after Christmas and New Year holidays. In contradiction to lay beliefs about these holidays, stress and conflict caused by its experience was weak, while participation in rituals was high and satisfactory, and positive emotions were dominant. High frequency of participation in ritualised family celebrations increased positive well-being: satisfaction with life, perceived social well-being, and the balance of affective well-being. Satisfaction with rituals had an impact on positive affect, satisfaction with life and positive family climate, while participation frequency was more relevant for social support and lower loneliness level. Conflict experienced during Christmas increased negative affect and negative emotional family climate, while it undermined positive affect, satisfaction with life and social well-being.     

Family‐of‐Origin Influence on Career Thoughts

The family can exert an important influence on career decision making. This study investigated the impact of adaptability and cohesion in family‐of‐origin relationships on dysfunctional career thoughts in 269 college students (221 women, 48 men). The Career Thoughts Inventory and the Family Adaptability and Cohesion Scales–IV were used to assess family dynamics and dysfunctional career thoughts. The study addressed the following research question: What is the impact of family cohesion and adaptability in the participant's family of origin on dysfunctional career thoughts, specifically decision‐making confusion, commitment anxiety, and external conflict? Results revealed that higher levels of family cohesion were associated with lower levels of decision‐making confusion, commitment anxiety, and external conflict and that higher levels of family adaptability were associated with lower levels of external conflict.     

Double trouble: work–family conflict and well-being for second job holders

The purpose of this study was to provide an initial investigation into the work–family conflict (WFC) experiences of individuals who hold a second job. Specifically, we proposed two opposing theoretical arguments regarding the relationship between WFC and four measures of well-being: life satisfaction, physical health, emotional exhaustion, and exercise for individuals who hold two jobs. In a sample of individuals working two jobs, we tested whether the effects of WFC arising from the first job and from the second job exerted an additive or interactive effect on employee well-being. Our results indicated that for emotional exhaustion, physical symptoms, and life satisfaction, the effects of WFC from two jobs are interactive; but that for exercise, the effects of WFC from two jobs are additive. In both cases, the additional WFC experienced as a result of working a second job contributed to the prediction of employee well-being over and above WFC from the first job. Results are discussed within the context of relevant theory, and suggestions are made for future research.     

Work–family conflict and job insecurity: are workers from different generations experiencing true differences?

This paper explores the question whether workers of different generations significantly diverge in their perceptions of work–family conflict and job insecurity and implications of such differences on affective commitment and job satisfaction. Given the explorative nature of this study, we use a multi-method approach which relies on a focus group with Italian graduated students and on a field study with workers from an Italian food processing company respectively grouped in three generational cohorts: Baby Boomers, gen Xers, and Millennials. Overall, our findings demonstrate that workers belonging to different generational cohorts display divergent perceptions of work–family conflict and job insecurity. However, the effects of such perceptions on work attitudes are not directly correlated with the experienced levels of job insecurity and work–family conflict. That is, although Millennials tend to perceive a higher level of job insecurity than Baby Boomers and gen Xers, job insecurity is more likely to produce negative consequences on work attitudes among Baby Boomers and gen Xers rather than among Millennials. Notably, our findings indicate that there are no significant differences with regard to the effects of work–family conflict on affective commitment and job satisfaction among the three generational cohorts considered.     

When Work and Family Merge: Understanding Intragroup Conflict Experiences in Family Farm Businesses

Family farms represent a huge portion of agriculture in the United States today. These family farms may struggle to balance both family relationships and business concerns, which can cause conflict among members. Some of this conflict may be derived from the independent, self-reliant nature of family farmers. These characteristics may influence how family farm members are able to deal with conflict, and how they choose to communicate during conflict interactions. This project used intragroup conflict theory and family communication patterns to explore the impact of everyday conflict on job satisfaction, communication satisfaction, and profitability in family farm businesses. Survey data were collected from family farm members (N = 204). The results of structural equation modeling showed conversation and conformity orientation significantly predicted relational, process, and status conflict in the model, yet only status conflict significantly predicted communication satisfaction. These findings suggested family farm members struggle with communication, which influences status conflict experiences and communication satisfaction.     

Gender,polychronicity, and the work–family interface: is a preference for multitasking beneficial?

This study examined how polychronicity, or the preference to do several things concurrently, was related to work and family overload, work–family conflict, and outcomes in the work, family, and life domains (i.e. turnover intent, family, and life satisfaction). Using conservation of resources theory as a framework, polychronicity was conceptualized as a resource that could be used to reduce work and family overload. The participants were 553 employed parents from Canada and the US. Results indicated that polychronicity was related to lower work overload. Lower work overload was related to lower work interference with family conflict, lower turnover intent, and higher family and life satisfaction. We also examined gender differences and found that, although women scored significantly higher than men on family overload and family satisfaction, and significantly lower than men on life satisfaction, there was no mean gender difference on polychronicity. In addition, the path coefficients in the model were not significantly different for men and women.     

Work–family Conflict and Job Satisfaction Relationship: The Roles of Gender and Interpretive Habits

This study examined the effects of gender and interpretive habits on the relationship between work–family conflict (WFC) and job satisfaction. The results of the analysis of the data collected from 286 academic personnel suggest that interpretive habits moderate the relationship between WFC and job satisfaction such that the negative effect of WFC and job satisfaction is stronger for employees focusing highly on deficiency, with high necessitating, and low skill recognition, referred to as stress‐predisposing interpretive habits. Furthermore, gender was found to have an influence on the role of interpretive habits in the WFC–job satisfaction relationship. Specifically, WFC had a negative association with job satisfaction for stress‐predisposed male employees while no relationship was found between WFC and job satisfaction for men with a low focus on deficiency, low necessitating and high skill recognition namely, stress‐resilient interpretive habits. Moreover, although WFC had a negative association with job satisfaction for female employees, this relationship was even stronger for stress‐resilient females. The implications of the findings and suggestions for future studies are discussed.     

Life satisfaction and family strengths of older couples

The purpose of this study was to examine the relation between family interaction quality of married elderly and their offspring and life satisfaction of older persons. Information was obtained by means of mailed questionnaires completed by both spouses of 68 married, retired couples living in Georgia and North Carolina who were identified through churches, senior centers, and congregate housing units and through personal contacts. For the total sample, health status was the strongest predictor of life satisfaction followed by certain family strengths factors and job prestige, respectively. Males and females differed concerning which variables contributed most to explaining variance in life satisfaction. Variance in life satisfaction of males was best explained by job prestige, family strengths, and financial help given. Variance in life satisfaction of women was best explained by their perception of their health, family strengths, and job prestige.     

Family‐Supportive Organizational Culture and Fathers' Experiences of Work–family Conflict in Sweden

This study explores fathers' experiences with work–family conflict and their perceptions of how supportive the organizational culture at work is regarding fathers' work–family needs, and whether a family‐supportive organizational culture is associated with less work–family conflict. A total of 377 fathers working in private Swedish companies were surveyed. While a modest proportion of fathers experienced high levels of work‐to‐family conflict, less family‐to‐work conflict was reported. Further, fathers perceived little work–family support from top managers, supervisors, and co‐workers. Our results indicate that the cultures in the examined companies have norms that separate work and family from each other. Fathers seem likely to experience work–family conflict as long as the family‐supportive organizational culture, especially at the work group level, is not well‐developed. When fathers experience their work organizations as family‐supportive, they are likely to be better able to combine work and family and thus to help Swedes achieve a more gender‐equal society.     

Social Integration,Work‐Family Conflict and Facilitation,and Job and Marital Quality

This paper examines relationships between 2 dimensions of social integration (community participation and affective community resources) and job and marital quality. Data from the 1995 National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States (n= 1,816) indicate that the level of community participation is unrelated or negatively related to job and marital quality, whereas affective community resources show positive associations with job and marital quality. Relationships between community participation and affective community resources and job stress are partially mediated by work‐to‐family conflict and facilitation. Family‐to‐work conflict and facilitation partially mediate relationships between affective community resources and marital satisfaction and risk. The study takes a beginning step in establishing relationships and exploring processes that make up the work‐community‐family interface.