Work-family interaction strain : coping strategies used by successful women in the public, corporate and self employed sectors of the economy

• Main Author: Brink, Beatrix
• Other Authors: De la Rey, Cheryl
• Format: Dissertation
• Language: English
• Published: University of Cape Town 2014
• Subjects: Research Psychology
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/9060

Bibliography: leaves 123-137. === The main objective of this study was to identify the coping strategies used by successful women in dealing with work-family interaction strain. The study also investigated cognitive appraisal as a key antecedent of coping with a hypothetical description of a work-family interaction strain situation. A survey was conducted with a sample comprising 110 women in the public, corporate and self-employed sectors of the economy. All the participants were married with at least one child of pre school or school going age. The women worked in positions from middle- management and higher in corporate and public sector organizations or were business owners with at least four employees. Quantitative and qualitative data were obtained by means of a self-report questionnaire. Interaction strain was measured using the Home and Employment Role scale (HER scale), developed by Parry and Wart (1980). Cognitive appraisal and coping was measured from within the framework of the transactional approach, which defines coping in terms of the person-environment relationship and emphasises the dynamic and interactive nature of the stressful transaction. Cognitive appraisal was measured using the items devised by Folkman, Lazarus, Dunkel-Schetter, DeLongis and Gwen (1986) and coping was measured using, the Ways of Coping Questionnaire (WCQ), developed by Folkman and Lazarus (1988). Qualitative data was obtained via a request to the respondents asking them to describe what it was like to have work and family responsibilities. The main finding of the study showed that the participants in this project used both emotional and problem-focused coping strategies in dealing with the hypothetical work-family interaction strain situation. These strategies were positive reappraisal; planful problem solving; self-controlling; and seeking social support. Not one of these coping strategies, however, was significantly favoured above the others. The study did not find evidence of a relationship between the participants' cognitive appraisal of the hypothetical situation and their choice of coping strategy in dealing with this situation, except with regards to cognitive appraisal, control and the coping strategy, escape-avoidance; the higher the participant scored on cognitive appraisal, control, the less likely they were to choose escape-avoidance as a coping strategy in dealing with the situation. Overall, the results of the study showed that this sample of successful business women chose emotion-focused and problem-focused coping strategies in an integrated manner to deal with a hypothetical work-family situation.