Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Balance between volunteer work and family roles
T2 - testing a theoretical model of work-family conflict in the volunteer emergency services
AU - Cowlishaw, Sean
AU - Evans, Lynette
AU - McLennan, Jim
PY - 2010/9
Y1 - 2010/9
N2 - Trends indicate overall declines in numbers of volunteer emergency service workers and suggest negative organisational factors impacting adversely on volunteers and organisations. Conflict between emergency service work and family is implicated in falling volunteer numbers, and there is thus a need for research on difficulties experienced in balancing volunteer work and family. The current study tested an adaptation of the work-family conflict (WFC) model originally proposed by Frone, Russell, and Cooper, in a sample of 102 couples in which one partner was an Australian emergency service volunteer. Results supported a model in which volunteer work-related antecedents, including time invested in on-call emergency activities and post-traumatic stress symptoms, had indirect links with outcomes, including volunteer burnout and their partners' support for the volunteer work role, through the effects of WFC. These results add to research using theoretical models of paid work processes to better understand the problems faced by volunteer workers, and identify specific antecedents and outcomes of WFC in the volunteer emergency services. Implications for future research and organisations reliant on volunteer workers are discussed.
AB - Trends indicate overall declines in numbers of volunteer emergency service workers and suggest negative organisational factors impacting adversely on volunteers and organisations. Conflict between emergency service work and family is implicated in falling volunteer numbers, and there is thus a need for research on difficulties experienced in balancing volunteer work and family. The current study tested an adaptation of the work-family conflict (WFC) model originally proposed by Frone, Russell, and Cooper, in a sample of 102 couples in which one partner was an Australian emergency service volunteer. Results supported a model in which volunteer work-related antecedents, including time invested in on-call emergency activities and post-traumatic stress symptoms, had indirect links with outcomes, including volunteer burnout and their partners' support for the volunteer work role, through the effects of WFC. These results add to research using theoretical models of paid work processes to better understand the problems faced by volunteer workers, and identify specific antecedents and outcomes of WFC in the volunteer emergency services. Implications for future research and organisations reliant on volunteer workers are discussed.
KW - POSTTRAUMATIC-STRESS-DISORDER
KW - family issues
KW - BURNOUT
KW - psychology of work and unemployment
KW - FIREFIGHTERS
KW - RECIPROCAL RELATIONS
KW - work-family interface
KW - CROSSOVER
KW - organisational psychology
KW - DEMANDS-RESOURCES MODEL
KW - OUTCOMES
KW - DUAL-EARNER COUPLES
KW - Emergency services
KW - INTEGRATIVE MODEL
KW - industrial
KW - INTERFACE
KW - volunteer work
U2 - 10.1080/00049530903510765
DO - 10.1080/00049530903510765
M3 - Journal article
VL - 62
SP - 169
EP - 178
JO - Australian Journal of Psychology
JF - Australian Journal of Psychology
SN - 0004-9530
IS - 3
ER -