Onset of Work-Life Conflict Increases Risk of Subsequent Psychological Distress in the Norwegian Working Population
Andrea Rørvik Marti1, Eirik Degerud1, Tom Sterud1
1Department of Occupational Health Surveillance, National Institute of Occupational Health, 0363 Oslo, Norway.
Abstract:
We aimed to assess whether the onset of work-life conflict is associated with a risk of subsequent onset of psychological distress. Respondents from a randomly drawn cohort of the general Norwegian working population were interviewed in 2009 (T1), 2013 (T2), and 2016 (T3) (gross sample n = 13,803). Participants reporting frequent work-life conflict at T1 and/or psychological distress (five-item Hopkins Symptom Checklist mean score ≥ 2) at T2 were excluded to establish a design that allowed us to study the effect of the onset of work-life conflict at T2 on psychological distress at T3. Logistic regression analysis showed that the onset of frequent work-life conflict more than doubled the risk of the onset of psychological distress at T3 (OR = 2.55; 95% CI 1.44-4.51). The analysis of the association between occasional work-life conflict and psychological distress was not conclusive (OR = 1.21; 95% CI 0.77-1.90). No differential effects of sex were observed (log likelihood ratio = 483.7, p = 0.92). The calculated population attributable risk (PAR) suggests that 12.3% (95% CI 2.84-22.9%) of psychological distress onset could be attributed to frequent work-life conflict. In conclusion, our results suggest that the onset of frequent work-life conflict has a direct effect on the future risk of developing symptoms of psychological distress in both male and female workers.
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