Disentangling the causal relationships between work-home interference and employee health
article
Objectives: The present study was designed to investigate the causal relationships between (time- and strain-based) work-home interference and employee health. The effort-recovery theory provided the theoretical basis for this study. Methods: Two-phase longitudinal data (with a 1-ye ar time lag) were gathered from 730 Dutch police officers to test the following hypotheses with structural equation modeling: (i) work-home interference predicts health deterioration, (ii) health complaints precede increased levels of such interference, and (iii) both processes operate. The relationship between stable and changed levels of work-home interference across time and their relationships with the course of health were tested with a group-by-time analysis of variance. Four subgroups were created that differed in starting point and the development of work-home interference across time. Results: The normal causal model, in which strain-based (b ut not time-based) work-home interference was longitudinally related to increased health complaints 1 year later, fit the data well and significantly better than the reversed causal model. Although the reciprocal model also provided a good fit, it was less parsimonious than the normal causal model. In addition, both an increment in (strain-based) work-home interference across time and a long-lasting experience of high (strain-based) work-home interference were associated with a deterioration in health. Conclusions: It was concluded that (str ain-based) work-home interference acts as a precursor of health impairment and that different patterns of (strain-based) work-home interference across time are related to different health courses. Particularly long-term experience of (strain-based) work-home interference seems responsible for an accumulation of health complaints. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Topics
GezondheidstoestandZiekte en GezondheidPoliceModellenonderzoekNederlandStressGeestelijke overbelastingPsychische arbeidsbelastingVeilig en Gezond WerkenDepressive complaintsFatigueLongitudinal dataPolice officersWork-family conflictHealth impactHealth riskOccupational exposureWorking conditionsControlled studyEmployeeHealth statusHomeHypothesisLongitudinal studyNetherlandsOccupational healthPoliceStatistical modelTheoretical studyTimeWorkAdultCausalityConflict (Psychology)DepressionFamilyFemaleHumansLongitudinal StudiesMaleOccupational HealthStress, PsychologicalWorkBeneluxEastern HemisphereEurasiaEuropeNetherlandsWestern EuropeWorld
TNO Identifier
238322
ISSN
03553140
Source
Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment and Health, 31(1), pp. 15-29.
Pages
15-29