Abstract
Orientation- The past several decades introduced various changes into the world of work ranging from technological advances and the introduction of women in the workplace. Workplace well-being is important for individual and organisational sustainability. Demographic variables have been shown to have significant relationship with workplace well-being. Therefore, it is crucial that the constructs associated with well-being be studied in the South African context to ensure that these are enhanced to improve employee well-being.
Research purpose- The study had three aims. The first aim was to determine whether the mean scores for work-family conflict, job stress and burnout are significantly different for different categories of gender, age, number of children, marital status and educational status. The second aim was to determine whether demographic variables (gender age, number of children, marital status and educational status) predict work-family conflict, job stress and burnout. The final objective was to determine whether gender moderates the relationship between work-family conflict on the one hand, and job stress and burnout on the other.
Motivation of the study- The study aimed to add to existing literature on the mean score differences for work-family conflict, job stress and burnout for different categories of gender, age, number of children, marital status and educational status. Further, it aimed to investigate whether gender moderates the relationship between work-family conflict on one hand, and job stress and burnout on the other hand.
Research design, approach and method- A quantitative, cross-sectional survey design was employed. Hard copy surveys were distributed to various companies in South Africa. The data was gathered using biographical questionnaires, the South African Burnout Scale, the Utrecht. Data analysis was conducted, namely correlation analysis, linear regression, t-tests, ANOVA and moderation analysis to
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calculate the results. A final sample of 339 participated in the statistical analysis. The statistical analysis included Pearson correlations, linear regression analyses and moderation analyses.
Main findings- Correlation analysis showed that there were statistically significant positive relationships between work-family conflict, family-work-conflict, burnout, and job stress. The results from the regression analysis showed that an individual’s age predicts their levels of job stress and burnout. Regarding gender differences, results from independent samples t-tests showed that there are differences in job stress according to gender. In particular, women experience higher levels of stress in comparison to men. Moreover, ANOVA results pointed to differences in levels of job stress and burnout according to an individual’s marital status. In particular, individuals living with a partner experienced higher levels of job stress and those who were divorced experienced higher levels of burnout. Lastly, moderation analysis found that gender moderates the relationship between work-to-family conflict and job stress. That is, the extent to which individuals experience job stress is explained by the interaction between gender and work-family conflict. experience work-to-family conflict and job stress depends on their gender.
Practical implications- This study provides insights on the potential effects that demographic variables can have on the workplace well-being of employees. Organisations should consider employees’ age, gender, and marital status when implementing interventions to improve their overall workplace well-being.
Keywords:- well-being, work-to-family conflict, family-to-work conflict, job stress, burnout, gender, demographic variables, marital status, age.