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ABSTRACT
The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to explore the impact of shift work (work performed during nonstandard hours) on the family relationships of shift workers. The author examined secondary 1997 data from the Families and Work Institute's National Study of the Changing Workforce (N = 3,552), and analyzed the differences in level of satisfaction with one's family (family satisfaction; FS) between shift workers and people who worked standard hours. Results demonstrated that working a nonstandard, nonflexible shift was significantly associated with a lower likelihood of FS, particularly for evening and night shifts. Although the total number of hours worked was not associated with FS, preferring to work fewer hours decreased the probability of reporting high FS. Job autonomy was another strong predictor of FS. Future research should include longitudinal studies to examine the long-term impact of shift work on families.
Work and Family
Changes in the structure of both work and family in the United States constitute a common theme in contemporary discourse on division of labor, work hours, family therapy, and social work.
In addition to the huge increase in women's labor force participation, the number of work hours per week has increased for both genders. In its longitudinal study of U.S. employees, the Families and Work Institute (FWI, 1999) found a rise in average weekly work hours from 43.1 in 1977 to 47.1 in 1997.
The combination of changes in families and work has led to hardships in balancing work and family responsibilities. Empirical research has revealed working parents' sense of pressure to choose between career advancement and family time (Bailyn, 1993; Hall, 1999; Morris, 1997; Solomon, 1994).
The study of work and family as a contemporary field of research began with Kanter's 1977 book, in which she argued against the "myth of separate worlds"(p. 8). The theoretical model of segmentation to explain the relationship between work and family was no longer accurate. Segmentation theory claims that work and family are separate and do not affect each other. Following Kanter's (1977) seminal work, research examined other theoretical models to clarify the work and family interface. Several studies demonstrated a conflicting relationship; others, a complementary one (Thompson, 1997; Olson, 1960).
Conflict theorists have reported negative consequences of work-family conflict for physical...