The Role of Work-Family Enrichment in Work- Life Balance & Career Success: A Comparison of German & Indian Managers München 2014
The Role of Work-Family Enrichment in Work- Life Balance & Career Success: A Comparison of German & Indian Managers Dissertation an der Fakultät fϋr Psychologie und Pädagogik der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München vorgelegt von aus Pune, Indien München, den 18.02.2014
Erstgutachter: Prof. Dr. Rudolf Tippelt Zweitgutachter: Prof. Dr. Hartmut Ditton Tag der mündlichen Prüfung: 20.01.2014
Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Rudolf Tippelt Chair for Institute of Pedagogy Department of Pedagogy & Rehabilitation Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany Second Reader: Prof. Dr. Hartmut Ditton Chair for General Educational Science Focusing on Research in Education & Socialisation Faculty of Psychology & Educational Sciences Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany Third Reader: Prof. Dr. Sabine Walper Research Director at Deutsches Jugendinstitut e.v., Munich, Germany Professor at Faculty of Psychology & Educational Sciences Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany Thesis submission: 18 th September, 2013 Disputation: 20 th January, 2014 Date of Publication: 18 th February, 2014 1
Table of Contents Acknowledgements... 5 Abstract... 6 Structure of the Thesis... 7 CHAPTER 1... 8 1. Introduction... 8 CHAPTER 2... 11 2. Literature Review... 11 2.1. What is work-life balance?... 11 2.2. What is the significance of work-life balance?... 13 2.3. How are work and family related? The Traditional approaches.... 15 2.4. How are work and family related? The Contemporary approaches.... 18 2.5. How to analyse work-life balance? Determinants & consequences.... 22 2.6. How are work-life balance and career success related? What does it mean to be successful in career?... 29 2.7. Organizational work-family culture and its relevance.... 34 2.8. Work-life interface and career success in Germany and India.... 35 2.9. Choosing enrichment approach over conflict approach.... 47 2.10. Rationale for conducting research.... 48 2.11. Rationale for conducting a cross-cultural comparison.... 49 2.12. Aim of the research.... 52 2.13. Design of the research.... 53 CHAPTER 3... 56 3. Theoretical Foundations... 56 3.1. Work-family enrichment theory.... 56 3.2. Role accumulation theory.... 60 3.3. Ecological systems theory.... 62 2
3.4. Work-family facilitation theory.... 63 3.5 Theoretical definitions at a glance.... 66 3.6. Formulation of hypotheses and research questions.... 67 CHAPTER 4... 74 4. Methodology... 74 4.1. Quantitative method.... 74 4.2. Qualitative method.... 85 CHAPTER 5... 97 5a. Results & Discussion Quantitative Method... 97 1. Independent t-test... 99 2. Correlation... 111 3. Hierarchical Multiple Regression... 123 4. Hierarchical Moderated regression... 150 CHAPTER 5... 153 5b. Results & Discussion - Qualitative Method... 153 SECTION I... 157 1. Enrichment and Career Advancement... 157 2. Work-life balance and Career Advancement... 173 3. Work-life balance & Family Dynamics... 194 4. Organizational Interventions for Work-life Balance... 202 5. Work-life Balance & Organizational Work-family Culture... 210 SECTION II... 218 Secondary results... 218 6. Career Success... 218 7. Self Development... 221 SECTION III... 222 8. General observations in qualitative analysis.... 222 3
CHAPTER 6... 225 6. Integrating Quantitative and Qualitative Results... 225 6.1. Matching findings in the mixed method approach.... 227 6.2. Conflicting findings in the mixed method approach.... 231 7. Conclusions & Remarkable Results... 237 8. Contributions of the Research... 244 9. Limitations & Future Directions of the Research... 245 10. Practical Implications... 247 11. References... 248 12. Appendices... 270 4
Acknowledgements I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone, who has directly and indirectly supported me to successfully complete this doctoral research. First of all, I would like to thank Prof. Dr. Rudolf Tippelt for giving me the opportunity to conduct this research under his expert supervision and for providing feedback from time to time. I would also like to sincerely thank my scholarship foundation Konrad Adenauer Stiftung for the financial support; without which attaining a doctoral degree would have just remained a dream. My sincere thanks to all the German & Indian managers, who agreed to participate in this cross-cultural research and were willing to share their work-life and career related experiences. I am also thankful to my acquaintances, friends and my mother, who helped me to establish contacts with various German and Indian companies. I also appreciate the support of Mrs. Gundula Barsotti-Bast, the secretary to Prof. Dr. Tippelt. I thank Ms. Angela Baquero for conducting the personal interviews of German managers. I would like to thank Dr. Andrea Szameitat for her guidance and constructive feedback on my presentations and thesis writing. Dr. Szameitat has been a guide in the true sense. I especially appreciate the time and energy she invested in reading my thesis and also for motivating me, whenever I felt lost. I am also thankful to the second reader Prof. Dr. Ditton Hartmut and the third reader Prof. Dr. Sabine Walper for their interest in my topic and also for their willingness to be my oral examiners. I am grateful to my friends especially Eva Kübber, Stephan Pflaum and other colleagues at the doctoral research colloquium for listening to me and providing their valuable feedback. I would like to thank Prof. Dr. Shobhana Abhyankar, HOD Fergusson College, Pune and Mrs. Sandhya Kulkarni (my tuition teacher in high school) for believing in me; which has contributed immensely to my success. Lastly, I am indebted to my mother Shubhangi Deshpande for her continuous support without which the successful completion of this thesis would have been impossible. And last but not the least; I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to my husband Suparna Tambe for his interest in my work and the unconditional support throughout the process of the research. 5
Abstract The issue of work-life balance is becoming increasingly important for employers and employees globally. The clearer becomes our understanding about this issue; the better it will be for an effective and positive integration of these dynamic domains of our lives. Work-family enrichment is a positive way of integrating work and family and it helps to achieve work-life balance. In this Indo- German study, work-life balance, work-family enrichment, work-family culture and career success are analysed on a cross-cultural level using quantitative as well as qualitative methods. The findings uncovered the similarities and differences that lie between Germany & India; which give insights into (a) the enriching experiences related to work-family (b) career success and (c) work-life balance related aspects of German and Indian managers. A few gender differences were observed when the data for both countries was analysed collectively. The results partially support a relationship between work-life balance & career success as well as a relationship between work-family enrichment/family-work enrichment & career success. Weltweit wird Work-life Balance immer wichtiger, sowohl für Arbeitgeber als auch für Arbeitnehmer. Je klarer unser Verständnis für das Thema und die Einflussfaktoren wird; desto besser kann eine effektive und symbiotische Integration dieser dynamischen Lebensbereiche gelingen. Work-family enrichment ist bisher ein wenig erforschter positiven Ansatz zur Integration von Arbeit und Familie. Work-life Balance, Work-family enrichment, Work-family culture und beruflicher Erfolg werden auf interkultureller Ebene mithilfe von quantitativen auch qualitativen Methoden analysiert. Die Untersuchungsergebnissen ermöglichen einen Einblick in Ähnlichkeiten und Unterschiede des Zugangs zum Thema worklife Balance zwischen Deutschland & Indien. Die Ergebnisse zeigen die bereichernden Erfahrungen der deutschen und indischen Managers im Zusammenhang mit verschieden Aspekten der Integration von Beruf und Familie, von beruflichem Erfolg und Work-life Balance. Einige geschlechtsspezifische Unterschiede konnten bei der Analyse, der gemeinsamen Daten für beide Länder festgestellt werden. Die Ergebnisse unterstützen die Beziehung zwischen Worklife Balance und beruflichem Erfolg zum Teil und auch zwischen Workfamily/Family-work enrichment und beruflichem Erfolg. 6
Structure of the Thesis The thesis is divided into six chapters. Wherever applicable every chapter is outlined with the goals at the beginning of the chapter and a summary at the end of the chapter. The first chapter introduces the topic of research, presenting briefly the history and how work-life balance research has been conducted in the USA, Europe, Asia and then specifically in Germany and India. This chapter also presents some organizational and family outcomes of work-life interface and career related aspects. The second chapter reviews the extensive literature on work-life interface and career success. This chapter attempts to define, conceptualize and present the various aspects of work-life interface and career success. At the end, a justification is provided for choosing the positive side (enrichment) of work-life interface instead of the negative side (conflict). This is followed by the rationale for conducting research and the rationale for a crosscultural comparison. The second chapter ends with the aim and the design of the research. The third chapter addresses the theories that are relevant to the research along with providing a justification of basing the current research on the mentioned theories and ends with the relevant hypotheses and research questions. The fourth chapter discusses the methodology of quantitative and qualitative sections and also provides a detailed description of the sample and data collection procedures. The fifth chapter is divided into two parts namely 5a and 5b referring to the two methods i.e. quantitative and qualitative respectively and includes the results; which are discussed and interpreted using empirical studies. The sixth chapter along with integrating the results from quantitative and qualitative methods, it also interprets the integrated results with the mixed methods approach. The last section of the sixth chapter includes detailed conclusions, remarkable results followed by contributions, limitations, future directions and practical implications of the research. 7
CHAPTER 1 1. Introduction Until the beginning of the twenty-first century, work-life balance did not get much attention and was perceived as less challenging as compared to the current perception because of two suppositions. First, mostly employment limited itself to a male full-time worker. Second, it was a trend that women were involved in more unpaid work such as nurturing, caring and domestic work (Crompton, 1999). These sort of fixed gender roles were viewed, moreover, as a solution to balance work and life, that is work be the responsibility of a man; whereas family, caring be the responsibility of a woman. The notion of work-life balance underwent a drastic change when the number of women workers and dual-earner couples increased in various employment sectors (Voydanoff, 1987, Lambert, 1990; Burke & Greenglass, 1987). The increased participation of the women employees changed the traditional work-life balance pattern mentioned above by Crompton (1999). Men participated more in the family responsibilities and shouldered higher domestic and child rearing responsibilities (Thomas & Ganster, 1995). As the work and family roles for the men and the women became flexible, this naturally influenced the way they balanced work and family. The individuals, who strive for the quality of work life and its linkages to the quality of non-work life, have been apprehensive about work-life balance. Work-life balance has been receiving generous consideration and has been a matter of concern for both employees and employers for many years (Guest, 2002). The US Department of Labour (1999) predicted that balancing work and life would receive increased importance in the coming years and would prove to be vital in catching attention of the highly experienced workers, and furthermore, in retaining these skilled workers. Crompton & Lyonette (2006) have described the work-life balance phenomenon in Europe. According to them, de-industrialization and prevalence of the service industry have left the European nations no choice, but to go beyond the traditional male bread-winner model. Unemployment has increased along with the fear of permanent long-term unemployment. As a result, many low-level 8
service jobs are a reality and are often not well paid giving precedence to dualearning. It is now a fact that many European nations are promoting women s employment in the labour market. Esping-Andersen (1999) and Esping-Andersen et al. (2002) also emphasize the women workers role in meeting the economic needs of the family, as their incomes will help to fight the poverty of their families and add to the welfare costs. Hence, work-life balance is a priority in policy making in Europe (Crompton & Lyonette, 2006). The goal of understanding and examining various aspects of work-life balance has been mostly accomplished by the Western Europe and the Anglo Saxon countries (Chandra, 2012) followed by the Eastern European countries (Shaffer, Joplin and Hsu, 2011). The Asian countries have recently started focusing on work-life research (e.g. Hassan, 2010; Cooke & Jing, 2009; Verma et al., 2009 and Bhatnagar & Rajadhyaksha, 2001). The negative side of work-family is operationalized as work-family conflict and positive side is operationalized as enrichment or facilitation (Frone, 2003). From the organizations point of view, the positive or negative relationship between work and non-work may lead to several outcomes that prove to be detrimental or beneficial to the organization. A positive association between workfamily balance and work-related outcome job satisfaction has been reported (Carlson et al., 2009). Allen et al. (2000) found that work-family enrichment and work related outcomes such as job satisfaction, affective commitment to the organization; turn-over intentions are positively related. Lower levels of workfamily conflict lead to higher organizational commitment and job satisfaction (Kossek & Ozeki, 1999, Allen et al., 2000 and Tiedje et al., 1990). Lyness & Judiesch (2008) found out that employees, who were rated higher in balance between work and life, were rated higher in career advancement potential. Higher work-family facilitation leads to higher organizational commitment and job satisfaction (Ayree, Srinivas & Tan, 2005). A negative relation between work and family seen as conflict can influence an individual s emotional and physical health leading to detrimental effects for organizations such as absenteeism and declining productivity (Cooper & Williams, 1994). Such a work-family conflict involves role conflict that has serious damaging outcomes for companies such as burnout (Leiter, 1990; Bacharach, Bamberger & Conley, 1991) and stress (Wallace, 1997; Cooper, Dewe & O Driscoll, 2001 and Boles, Johnston & Hair, 1997). 9
From the families point of view, the positive or negative relationship between work and non-work may lead to certain outcomes. Higher work-family balance leads to higher family satisfaction, marital satisfaction and higher family performance (Allen et al., 2000 and Frone, Yardley & Markel, 1997). King, Botsford & Huffman (2009) found out that employees who experience positive spillover from home to work are the people, who most probably feel successful at work. The negative outcomes for family that is lower quality of family life because of work-family conflict have been reported by Higgins, Duxbury & Irving (1992). The presence of work-family conflict results in poor marital adjustment (Blood & Wolfe, 1960). Gareis et al. (2009) have reported that research on work-family balance has been dominated by the conflict approach for more than 20 years; which considers work and family as separate domains that compete with each other for time and attention related resources (Barnett, 1998). There is emerging evidence highlighting the importance of the positive side of the work-life interface through enrichment approach; which is defined as resources and experiences gained in one role improve role performance and quality of life in another role (Carlson et al., 2006). If work-family enrichment is promoted by organizations, it will prove to be beneficial to the organizations (Carlson, Grzywacz & Zivnuska, 2009). Looking at the limited examination of positive relation between work and family as compared to work-family conflict; the prime focus of this two-country study will be on the enrichment perspective of the work-family interface. The work-family interface has been given a lot of attention in the English speaking countries as mentioned earlier. A comparison between nations apart from the English speaking nations seems the need of the hour and will be achieved through this Indo-German study. Considering the studies mentioned above establishing the relation between worklife balance or positive work-family interface and organizational outcomes, there is a need to examine the relationship between positive work-family interface and career success that is career satisfaction and career advancement because these organizational outcomes have not received much attention. Therefore, the goal of this Indo-German study is to investigate the relationship between work-life balance, work-family enrichment, career satisfaction and career advancement. 10
CHAPTER 2 2. Literature Review Goals of the chapter: To present the most relevant literature on work-life interface and career success. This chapter aims to define, conceptualize and present the various aspects of work-life interface and career success. At the end of this chapter, a justification is provided for choosing the positive side (enrichment) of work-life interface instead of the negative side (conflict). This is followed by the rationale for the research and rationale for a cross-cultural comparison. The second chapter ends with the aim and the design of the research. 2.1. What is work-life balance? Conceptualizing work-life balance and work-family balance. Before defining work-life balance, it is worth mentioning how work and life are conceived for the current study; which is in accordance with the established definitions. Work in a straightforward way is conceived as paid employment and life is viewed as activities outside work (Guest, 2002, p. 262). Rothausen (1999) conceives that a realistic family would include all others, who meet certain needs or functions, formerly thought to be met by the family, she further points out that this is a functional or effective definition, rather than a traditional or legal definition. (p. 820). Work-life balance is defined by Kirchmeyer (2000) as achieving satisfying experiences in all the life domains and to do so requires personal resources such as energy, time, and commitment be well distributed across domains (p. 81). Work-life balance is a much broader concept in comparison to work-family balance in the sense, that it encompasses multiple roles outside family life e.g. community, leisure and religious roles, that an individual engages in (Frone, 2003). Work-life balance is often replaced by workfamily balance. Initially the focus of the linkages between work and family roles was; moreover, concentrated on the women and the stress they have to deal with, while managing work and family. Gradually, new notions regarding the linkages 11
between work and family surfaced (Gregory & Milner, 2009). The initial focus of work-family interface was conflict, and then it moved to balance and now the focus in on integration (Burke, 2004). According to Frone (2003), work-family balance is a condition; where there is least conflict and substantial facilitation between work and family spheres. Another definition is proposed by Voydanoff (2005) a global assessment that work resources meet family demands, and family resources meet work demands such that participation is effective in both domains (p. 825). An alternative definition is recommended by Grzywacz & Carlson (2007). According to them, work-family balance is an accomplishment of role-related expectations, that are negotiated and shared between the individual and his/her role-related partners in work and family domains (p. 458); This definition goes beyond the psychological domain; which is the base of the definitions presented earlier and shifts to the social domain; thus, making the work-family experience observable and also suggesting that balance can be achieved even though the conflicting experiences between work and family are present. This specific definition of balance also suggests that balance does not necessarily depend on effectiveness or performance; this seems imperative, as it is not expected that an individual must excel in work and family domains (Carlson et al., 2009). Thus, the last definition is believed to be more inclusive of various factors of work-family as compared to earlier definitions in the work-family literature. Work-life balance is becoming increasingly challenging and this challenge is mostly viewed in the context of striking a balance between work and family (Jones, Burke & Westman, 2006). In the literature of work-family interface, it is a reality that work-life balance and work-family balance are hardly ever clearly defined, but together they are viewed as the self reports of an individual s understanding and a perspective of balance between two roles (Jones et al., 2006). Frone (2003, p. 144) also confirms that often the term non-work is synonymously used for family. In their conclusive remarks on work-life balance, Jones et al. (2006) have argued that work-life balance is actually a multifaceted issue and too often the primary focus of the research is work-family. They have expressed the need to involve other areas of life beyond family life. The explanation provided above is considered important because for the current twocountry study the terms work-life balance and work-family balance are seen as 12
complementing each other and the terms will be used interchangeably based upon their relevance to the specific chapter in the thesis. 2.2. What is the significance of work-life balance? The need for having a balance. The research focusing on the association between work and family has been documented since 1930s (Marshall, 1992 a, b). The work cultures now-adays have undergone quite a few changes giving rise to the issue of work-life interface. These changes in work-cultures may lead to an imbalance between work life and non-work life. There is a change in the work culture as a result of increased pressures at work, advances in the information technology such as extensive use of internet and constant need of being in touch, information overload, and pressure of delivering quality customer service. Such changing work demands influence the non-work life negatively that is working long hours, working intensively and working in tight deadlines to meet the demands causing imbalance between work life and non-work life (Guest, 2002). The changes in the workcultures have affected the vacations, which are also called as recovery experiences (experiences during the leisure time); which play an important role in unwinding oneself from work (Geurts & Sonnentag, 2006). The vacations are getting shorter or have lost importance when weighed against work (Rao & Indla, 2010). According to Guest (2002), long working hours, time pressures at work may result in higher stress levels for the individual and also increase the weekend and evening work leading to less quality time with the family members. The changing work cultures in Europe show that there is a growth in the intensity of work (intensity is determined through working with a high speed and within strict deadlines) and the UK stands first followed by Ireland, France and some other European nations. In the case of Germany, there was no rise in the intensity of work. In the case of India, (Rao & Indla, 2010) observed that very often life (that is non-work life) has been taken over by work and there is a need to deal with the work-life imbalance resulting thereof. Along with the work-cultures, the demographic and the structural changes in the family also need to be taken into account; while understanding the need for having a balance. In the western industrial society, there is an increase in the 13
number of childless singles, single-parent families, and single-earner families, along with increased demands of child care, elder care and higher participation of women population in the labour market (Ferber, O Farrell & Allen, 1991; Guest, 2002; Bond, Galinsky & Swanberg, 1998). In the Indian context too, changes in the family structure are evident. The traditional joint and extended families are disappearing and their place is taken by the nuclear families (Rajadhyaksha, 2004). A nuclear family is a small unit including spouse and children only; whereas a traditional joint family is, where family members from 3-4 generations live together. All the changes mentioned above in the work and life spheres have significant effects on how work and family life relate to each other. Some examples of types of families and their effect on work-life balance are outlined below. The work-life balance related needs of the dual-earner couples seem to be different than the singles. The chances of single parents or single individuals having a strong social support at work (Casper, Herst & Swanberg, 2003) are less because most often the singles are socially excluded. This may affect the singles work-family balance, as the employee benefits or work-family benefit programs (e.g. supportive supervisors and flexible work-time) are mainly offered to the married employees with children. The childless singles might not benefit much from the standard work-life programs offered to employees with families (Young, 1996). This may affect the work-life balance of the singles negatively because the suitable supportive work-family benefits; which ease out the balance process are not made available to them. The main difference between single families and dualearners with dependent children is seen in the household responsibilities involving housework, childcare (Pederson et al., 2011); which may directly influence the time spent by single-parents and dual-earner couples on household chores. Thus, different types of families may perceive the need for work-life balance differently. The explanation provided above shows that work-life balance is a necessity, if one wants to stay away from the ill-effects of work-family conflict such as high stress leading to physical and emotional exhaustion and deteriorating the quality of family life or non-work life. As noted earlier, having a balance means having satisfactory experiences in all the domains of life; which may ultimately lead to physical and emotional well-being. The research in the field of work-life 14
interface has pointed out some indicators of work-life balance. The indicators are high self esteem, psychological well-being, satisfaction as mentioned earlier and mainly living a harmonious life. These indicators illustrate successful balancing between work and family roles (Clarke, Koch & Hill, 2004; Marks & MacDermid, 1996; and Clark, 2000). 2.3. How are work and family related? The Traditional approaches. There is vast research literature on the relationship between work-life mostly termed as work-family. Edwards & Rothbard (2000), Zedeck & Mosier (1990) and O Driscoll (1996) have reviewed this literature and have contributed to the understanding of this dynamic association of work and family. These researchers have noted that there are five main approaches also known as linking mechanisms (Edwards & Rothbard, 2000) to elucidate the relationship between work and family. The last two approaches have individual contributors. i) Spillover. The spillover approach proposes that the experiences in one role affect the experiences in second role. The behaviour, mood, skills and values from one role can spillover to the second role. Spillover may occur in two conditions. First, when there is a similarity between work and any other domain (Edwards & Rothbard, 2000) e.g. an individual is satisfied with the quality of work done on a particular day; this results in satisfactory experiences at home. Second, spillover occurs as a result of transference (Edwards & Rothbard, 2000) e.g. stress at workplace spills over to the family domain and the individual displays irritable mood in the family. Thus, spillover can be both positive and negative. ii) Congruence. The congruence approach is somewhat similar to spillover. Congruence can be achieved through a positive linkage between work and family experiences; wherein congruence is a result of a third factor that influences both work life and family life (Edwards & Rothbard, 2000). For example a negative influence of a third variable on work and family relationship, that is negative affect as a personality characteristic (Frone, Russell and Cooper, 1995). Similarly, positive work-family culture in the organization may affect both work life (e.g. flexibility with 15
working time) and family life (ample leaves and child care facilities at work) positively; thus, congruence between work and family is possible. iii) Compensation. The compensation approach refers to an attempt of making up for shortcomings or deficits in one role through higher involvement in another role (Edwards & Rothbard 2000; Zedeck, 1992 and Lambert 1990). These deficiencies could be the demands or satisfactions that can be fulfilled in another role (Guest, 2002). For example an individual is highly engaged in the work life because of some negative experiences in the non-work life. The sense of doing something worthwhile and gaining positive energy in non-work life is achieved through higher engagement at workplace. iv) Segmentation. The segmentation approach posits that work and family are two distinctive domains and there is no relationship between the two domains, indicating that work and family are separate spheres; which may not influence each other (Edwards & Rothbard, 2000, Zedeck, 1992, and Zedeck & Moiser, 1990). The early conceptions of this approach proposed a natural separation of work and family domains because both the roles involve distinct meaning, tasks and behaviours; therefore, maintain a physical and a temporal separation (Blood & Wolfe, 1960). But as the research developed a new perspective regarding segmentation approach emerged. This separation is recently conceived as a boundary between work and non-work; which is thought to be impermeable (Nippert-Eng, 1995). Segmentation is also viewed as an active psychological process that may be used as managing a boundary between work and family (Kossek, Noe & DeMarr, 1999 and Rothbard, Phillips & Dumas, 2005). v) Integration. The integration approach hypothesizes that work and family domains can be integrated and they are very closely associated as if woven together; therefore, it is impossible to differentiate between the two domains. This approach is also called as identity approach (Edwards & Rothbard, 2000). 16
vi) Work-family border theory. In the light of segmentation being conceived as boundary between work and non-work, another theory that partly shares the notion is the work-family border theory. The difference between the border theory and the segmentation approach is that in the border theory, Clark (2000) argues, that individuals cross this border between work and non-work daily and they move in and out of the border; whereas the classical conception of the segmentation approach was that the boundary of work and family is impermeable. The work-family border theory postulates that such a border is permeable and that work and family can indeed influence each other (Guest, 2002). vii) Role conflict versus role accumulation. Sieber (1974) defines a role according to that of Merton (1957) and Gross, Ward & McEachern (1958) as a pattern of expectations which apply to a particular social position and which normally persist independently of the personalities occupying the position (p. 569). Tiedje et al. (1990) have suggested a typology on role involvement and they have founded their typology on role conflict (Goode, 1960) and role enhancement or role accumulation theory (Marks, 1977 and Sieber, 1974). Role conflict occurs when an individual engages in multiple roles with unlimited demands causing role strain and role conflict because the demands and expectations the individual has to fulfil are scarce and limited (Goode, 1960). On the contrary, the role enhancement or role accumulation theory suggests that there are four basic types of benefits or rewards for engaging in more than one role: role-privileges; security; resources for status enhancement & role performance; enrichment of the personality & ego gratification (Sieber, 1974). The traditional approaches to work-life balance have been put forward for the purpose of understanding the mechanisms; which operate within the relationship of work and non-work and it was empirically found that all these linkages exist and many a times, these mechanisms are into action simultaneously (Lambert, 1990). Frone (2003) suggests that these approaches although insightful, do not prove to be sufficient to understand the work-life interface completely. The contemporary approaches to work-life interface are recommended that may help in further understanding the work-family balance issue. 17