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The Relationship Between Proactive Behavior and Work-Family Conflict: A Moderated Mediation Model
Zilong Cui1,2, Yuyin Li3
1Department of Human Resource Management, Yatai College of Business Administration, Jilin University of Finance and Economics, Changchun, China.
Frontiers in Psychology
|May 20, 2021
Summary
Proactive behavior can increase work-family conflict, with workplace anxiety acting as a key mediator. Supervisor perspective-taking and employee emotional intelligence can help mitigate this effect.
Area of Science:
- Organizational Psychology
- Occupational Health Psychology
Background:
- Proactive behavior is increasingly recognized for its impact on employee well-being and work outcomes.
- Work-family conflict remains a significant challenge for many employees, affecting both personal and professional spheres.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the mediating role of workplace anxiety in the relationship between proactive behavior and work-family conflict.
- To examine the moderating effects of immediate supervisor perspective taking and employee emotional intelligence on this indirect relationship.
Main Methods:
- A moderated mediation model was tested using two-wave, multisource lagged data from 450 employees in Chinese firms.
- Statistical analyses were employed to assess the proposed direct, indirect, and moderated effects.
Main Results:
- Proactive behavior was positively associated with work-family conflict.
- Workplace anxiety partially mediated the link between proactive behavior and work-family conflict.
- Both supervisor perspective taking and emotional intelligence moderated the indirect effect of proactive behavior on work-family conflict via workplace anxiety.
Conclusions:
- Proactivity, while often beneficial, can inadvertently heighten work-family conflict through increased workplace anxiety.
- Supervisor support (perspective-taking) and individual differences (emotional intelligence) are crucial boundary conditions that can buffer the negative consequences of proactivity.
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