| This thesis involved the development and validation of a scale measuring perceptions about coworkers' reactions toward efforts to balance work and family life and an investigation of the role that perceptions about coworkers' reactions play in work-to-family conflict and enrichment, and the use of work-family (W-F) policies. First, a pilot study examined employees' perceptions about their coworkers' reactions to W-F issues through four focus groups with full-time working parents. Results indicated that employees viewed their coworkers as an important source of both support for and antagonism toward their efforts to balance their work and family life. Types of perceived support for W-F balance included instrumental, informational and emotional.;Next, Study 1 consisted of the development and initial validation of a scale to assess employees' perceptions about their coworkers' reactions to their efforts to balance their work and family life, referred to as coworker reactions to W-F balance. Results indicated that the Coworker Reactions to W-F Balance Scale consisted of four factors. Three of these factors pertained to aspects of coworker support for W-F balance and one to coworker antagonism toward W-F balance. The overall scale and the four subscales demonstrated excellent internal consistency reliabilities. Overall, the Coworker Reactions to W-F Balance Scale showed good convergent and discriminant validity.;In Study 2, a theoretical model depicting the relationship among coworker support for and antagonism toward W-F balance, work-to-family conflict and enrichment, W-F policy use, job satisfaction, and intent to turnover was tested. Results from path analyses revealed that higher levels of perceived coworker support for W-F balance predicted higher levels of work-to-family enrichment and lower levels of work-to-family conflict. Moreover, higher levels of perceived coworker antagonism toward W-F balance predicted higher levels of work-to-family conflict and lower levels of W-F policy use. For women, perceived coworker antagonism toward W-F balance predicted higher levels of work-to-family conflict. However, neither perceived coworker support for nor perceived coworker antagonism toward W-F balance directly predicted W-F policy use or work-to-family enrichment for women. For men, perceived coworker support for W-F balance predicted higher levels of work-to-family enrichment, but not W-F policy use. Additionally, perceived coworker antagonism toward W-F balance predicted higher levels of work-to-family conflict and intent to turnover, and lower levels of W-F policy use. The theoretical and practical implications of this research and directions for future research are provided. |
