Work-Family Enrichment: A Model of Antecedents and Consequences

Research related to the two fields of work and family, shifted from conflict-oriented approaches to balance-oriented approaches and today to the enrichment of these two fields. In work-family enrichment and family-work enrichment, work and family are thought to be interdependent; Therefore, experience, resources, skills and opportunities gained in the workplace, improve family life and, conversely, positive mood and behavior and a sense of success in personal life affect the performance of people in the workplace. The present study investigated the antecedents and consequences of work-family enrichment. The antecedents extracted from the research literature are social support, personality traits, and job characteristics, that affect work-family enrichment and family-work enrichment through organizational commitment. Consequences also include innovative behaviors, life satisfaction, and job satisfaction that are affected by work-family enrichment and family-work enrichment through psychological capital and social-emotional characteristics. 

The statistical population of the study consisted 220 employees of Farabi Campus of Tehran University. The research method is descriptive-correlational and the instruments included standard questionnaires. A statistical sample of 139 people was selected by simple random sampling method. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling and SPSS and Smart PLS software packages. 

The results of the research showed that among the antecedents, social support and personality traits have a positive and significant relationship with work-family enrichment and family-work enrichment, and job characteristics only have a positive and significant relationship with work-family enrichment through organizational commitment. Also, both dimensions of work-family enrichment have no significant relationship with the considered consequences.

Managers' attention to the factors that facilitate the work-family of employees in an organization can be effective in reducing employees’ stress, improving their performance, and improving organizational productivity. Improving the quality of personal life of employees is another result of this study that has a direct impact on employees’ health in the long term and their efficiency in the organization. According to the research results, adapting employees' job plans to their family responsibilities, providing various facilities related to the workplace and their personal life, holding various training courses regarding employees’ attitude change, and generally providing various organizational support are suggested.