Title | Work-Family Conflict and Employee Sleep: Evidence from IT Workers in the Work, Family and Health Study. |
Publication Type | Journal Article |
Year of Publication | 2016 |
Authors | Buxton, OM, Lee, S, Beverly, C, Berkman, LF, Moen, P, Kelly, EL, Hammer, LB, Almeida, DM |
Journal | Sleep |
Volume | 39 |
Issue | 10 |
Pagination | 1871-1882 |
Date Published | 2016 Oct 01 |
ISSN | 1550-9109 |
Keywords | Actigraphy, Adult, Cross-Sectional Studies, Family Characteristics, Family Conflict, Family Relations, Female, Humans, Informatics, Male, Middle Aged, Occupational Health, Sleep, Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders, Time Factors, Workload |
Abstract | <p><b>STUDY OBJECTIVES: </b>Work-family conflict is a threat to healthy sleep behaviors among employees. This study aimed to examine how Work-to-Family Conflict (demands from work that interfere with one's family/personal life; WTFC) and Family-to-Work Conflict (demands from family/personal life that interfere with work; FTWC) are associated with several dimensions of sleep among information technology workers.</p><p><b>METHODS: </b>Employees at a U.S. IT firm (n = 799) provided self-reports of sleep sufficiency (feeling rested upon waking), sleep quality, and sleep maintenance insomnia symptoms (waking up in the middle of the night or early morning) in the last month. They also provided a week of actigraphy for nighttime sleep duration, napping, sleep timing, and a novel sleep inconsistency measure. Analyses adjusted for work conditions (job demands, decision authority, schedule control, and family-supportive supervisor behavior), and household and sociodemographic characteristics.</p><p><b>RESULTS: </b>Employees who experienced higher WTFC reported less sleep sufficiency, poorer sleep quality, and more insomnia symptoms. Higher WTFC also predicted shorter nighttime sleep duration, greater likelihood of napping, and longer nap duration. Furthermore, higher WTFC was linked to greater inconsistency of nighttime sleep duration and sleep clock times, whereas higher FTWC was associated with more rigidity of sleep timing mostly driven by wake time.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS: </b>Results highlight the unique associations of WTFC/FTWC with employee sleep independent of other work conditions and household and sociodemographic characteristics. Our novel methodological approach demonstrates differential associations of WTFC and FTWC with inconsistency of sleep timing. Given the strong associations between WTFC and poor sleep, future research should focus on reducing WTFC.</p> |
DOI | 10.5665/sleep.6172 |
Alternate Journal | Sleep |
PubMed ID | 27568810 |
PubMed Central ID | PMC5020369 |
Grant List | U01 HD059773 / HD / NICHD NIH HHS / United States U01 HD051256 / HD / NICHD NIH HHS / United States U01 AG027669 / AG / NIA NIH HHS / United States U01 HD051217 / HD / NICHD NIH HHS / United States U01 HD051218 / HD / NICHD NIH HHS / United States U01 OH008788 / OH / NIOSH CDC HHS / United States R03 AG046393 / AG / NIA NIH HHS / United States U01 HD051276 / HD / NICHD NIH HHS / United States UL1 TR001425 / TR / NCATS NIH HHS / United States R01 HL107240 / HL / NHLBI NIH HHS / United States |