This thesis attempted to examine the effects of on-call work schedules on professional social workers. This was achieved through the use of a demographic survey and qualitative face-to-face and phone interviews. A total of 15 interview questions were explored, the subjects included: the impacts of on-call work on psychological, physiological, emotional well-being and work family balance of professional social workers. Participants were recruited using availability sampling and the sample size consisted of nine participants. The nine interviews were transcribed and analyzed using thematic analysis. The researcher identified common themes related to on-call work schedules. Results found that participants suffered familial disruption as well as impacts on their well-being and support system. There was also a lack of access to patient information and similar difficulties experienced by participants while on-call. Participants also provided suggestions in order to improve on-call experiences. It is recommended that similar studies be conducted on a larger sample size to insure generalizability and a greater understanding of the impacts on-call work has on the social work profession.

From 1948 to 2015, there was a dramatic increase of mothers in the workforce. The literature demonstrates that mothers tend to work outside of the home while also maintaining most of the domestic roles. However, the literature does not address how these women are able to balance their roles. There is a gap in the literature concerning the relationship between locus of control, perceived supportive factors, income size, and work-life balance for working mothers. The purpose of this cross-sectional quantitative study was to fill that gap as measured by Rotter's Internal- External Control Scale, Satisfaction with Work and Family Balance Scale, Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), income size, and demographic information. The work and family border theory and the social learning theory were used as the theoretical frameworks. This online study used Facebook to recruit 164 working mothers between the ages of 18-50 with children under the age of 18. Correlations, t tests, and linear regressions were used to analyze the data. The results showed no significant relationship between loci of control on work-life balance. However, perceived support was associated with work-life balance and predicting work-life balance. This study is intended for employers, program developers, and mental health professionals in their efforts to support working mothers in gaining work-life balance. The social change implications of this study are to increase understanding of work-life balance, reduce mental health risks associated with imbalance, decrease job dissatisfaction, absenteeism, isolation, and increase universality and normalcy of the working mother experience.

Senior leaders who fail to implement work-life balance strategies may experience reduced profits and sustainability challenges. This single case study explored employers' strategies for improving employee work-life balance. The population for the study included 4 senior leaders of a hospice care agency in North Carolina who successfully implemented employee work-life balance strategies. Data were collected from semistructured interviews and from the review of company documents, website, and social media pages. The conceptual framework for the study was the transformational leadership theory. The trustworthiness of interpretations was supported by member checking. Four themes emerged from inductive analysis of the data: a supportive work environment promotes employee work-life balance, leadership trust is key to the success of employee work-life balance, work-life balance programs minimize stress and improve employee job satisfaction, and flexibility and remote work options increase employee work-life balance. Implementing work-life balance strategies in an organization may increase employee morale, employee productivity, and quality of work life. The application of the findings of this study may contribute to positive social change by providing insights for senior leaders on the implementation of strategies to achieve work-life balance to increase workplace sustainability and meet the physiological and psychological needs of employees as well as contribute positively to the communities and the organizations served.

The factor structure of the work/family conflict scale developed by Carlson, Kacmar, & Williams (2000) was analyzed for measurement invariance between a US and an Australian/New Zealand (ANZ) sample using a multisample confirmatory factor analysis procedure. Results indicated that factor pattern fit between the female samples on the common model was good-to-mediocre, and factor pattern fit between the male samples and the common model was mediocre-to-poor. Both samples exhibited significant changes in chi square when testing for the more restrictive factor loading equivalence. Partial measurement invariance revealed a better fit between the male samples when three of the items were unconstrained, and when eight items were unconstrained between the female samples. Finally, males and females in the ANZ sample exhibited factor pattern invariance, but required two items to be unconstrained before factor loading invariance was achieved. Mean differences on the six scales revealed higher levels of time-based work interference with family and family interference with work for males than for females in the ANZ sample.

In recent years, a growing body of research has examined the issue of work–life balance (WLB). WLB initiatives have been developed by organisations, not only to aid employees in leading healthier and more satisfying lives, but to attract and retain talent. One area where WLB issues have not been examined in detail is from the perspective of Chinese immigrant women. As one of the largest and growing Asian ethnic groups, the WLB issues faced by Chinese women are especially worthy of being examined and addressed. The primary purpose of this research was to explore the WLB experience of Chinese women in administrative roles at Auckland University of Technology (AUT). It also aims to contribute to the body of knowledge on WLB issues for minority ethnic groups and investigated Chinese women’s coping strategies for integrating work with their non-work roles. An exploratory qualitative case study approach was adopted for this study in order to compare and contrast organisational initiatives and policies for WLB with women’s experiences. A triangulated research design was also employed to glean qualitative data by virtue of multiple methods including archival evidence such as publicly available documentation, secondary research on WLB and AUT’s WLB policies, and semi-structured interviews. This study involved 12 Chinese female administrative staff and three staff members from the Human Resource Department (HRD), the Asian Staff Network (ASN) and the AUT Branch of Tertiary Institutes Allied Staff Association (TIASA). Participants were recruited by utilising sources such as the Asian Staff Network (ASN) and the researcher’s network of contacts within AUT. The findings of the study indicated that Chinese women’s WLB experience and ways of handling work–family conflict (WFC) and family–work conflict (FWC) were affected by their experiences of immigration and cultural backgrounds. In particular, their family situation had a critical influence on the way they organised their households and arranged for childcare or eldercare. Child/elder care responsibilities, personal/family emergencies, and personal/individual sacrifice engendered tensions around their ability to integrate WLB. In addition, work factors such as heavy workloads, meeting deadlines, and working longer hours, and cultural barriers caused emotional stress and physical consequences. While informal support from managers and colleagues and the WLB policies offered by the university helped women address their WLB issues, some policies were underutilised. A variety of coping strategies such as family members, win-lose strategies, time management, building clear boundaries, changing mindsets, and demonstrating commitment were actively adopted by Chinese women as mechanisms to cope with tensions between their work and family lives. The implications of these findings are discussed in light of the theory and practice of WLB.

<p>The work-life balance is currently in vogue among governments, organizations as well as researchers. Higher managers in organizations all over the world are exposed to significant pressures in their jobs, which further influence the balance between their work and private lives, job satisfaction and overall well-being. In this thesis, we apply a different perspective on the topic of work-life balance than most of the previous scientific research. We have focused on the governmental, organizational and individual factors that affect the work-life balance of higher managers and the consequent influence on their job satisfaction and overall well-being.</p><p>The objective of this study is to contribute to the work-life balance research by exploring the fit between companies’ human resource practices and higher managers’ actual perceptions and needs. In order to gain different perspectives, our empirical research consists of a series of interviews with both HR managers and members of higher management.</p><p>The key findings in terms of the factors influencing higher managers are reported. They suggest that the individuals are influenced by several aspects. The responsibility for personal work-life balance does not only lie on individuals themselves, but the organizations and governments play an important role in treating this issue as well.</p>

The work-life balance is currently in vogue among governments, organizations as well as researchers. Higher managers in organizations all over the world are exposed to significant pressures in their jobs, which further influence the balance between their work and private lives, job satisfaction and overall well-being. In this thesis, we apply a different perspective on the topic of work-life balance than most of the previous scientific research. We have focused on the governmental, organizational and individual factors that affect the work-life balance of higher managers and the consequent influence on their job satisfaction and overall well-being. The objective of this study is to contribute to the work-life balance research by exploring the fit between companies’ human resource practices and higher managers’ actual perceptions and needs. In order to gain different perspectives, our empirical research consists of a series of interviews with both HR managers and members of higher management. The key findings in terms of the factors influencing higher managers are reported. They suggest that the individuals are influenced by several aspects. The responsibility for personal work-life balance does not only lie on individuals themselves, but the organizations and governments play an important role in treating this issue as well.

Syftet med denna uppsats är att undersöka hur olika aspekter av arbetslivet påverkar individen. Vår utgångspunkt i denna uppsats är att vi ställer oss kritiska till arbeten med högt självbestämmande som blir allt mer vanligt. Till vår hjälp har vi en mängd tidigare forskning samt kritisk teori och Foucaults teori om makt och övervakning som guidar oss i genom forskningsprocessen. Urvalet är baserat på tidigare statistik framtaget av ESS, som består av ett samarbete mellan 24 europeiska länder. Uppsatsen testar hur olika aspekter av arbetslivet påverkar gränsdragningen mellan arbete och fritid. Resultaten visar att ju högre grad av självbestämmande individen har i sitt arbete, desto mindre missnöjd är hon med tidsfördelning mellan arbete och fritid samt att en högre grad av självbestämmande även tenderar att skapa en oro hos individen på hennes fritid över arbetsrelaterade problem. Vår slutsats är att det finns goda skäl att vara uppmärksam på vad detta alltmer vanliga arbetssätt kan ställa till med för individen. / The purpose of this paper is to explore how different aspects of working life affect the individual. Our starting point in this paper is that we are critical of jobs with high autonomy that is becoming increasingly common. To assist us, we have a lot of previous research as well as critical theory and Foucault’s theory about power and surveillance that guides us through the research process. The selection is based on previous statistics produced by the ESS, which consists of a collaboration between 24 European countries. The essay test different aspects of paid work and its affect on work-life balance. The results show that the higher the degree of autonomy the individual has in his/her work, the less dissatisfied he/she is with time spent between work and leisure. A higher degree of autonomy does in fact lead to the individual worrying about work-related problems in his/her leisure time. Our conclusion is that there are good reasons to pay attention to what this increasingly common tendency can affect the individual.

In North America, to become an architect, students must acquire a wide range of knowledge, create designs in studio, and spend some time working in an architecture firm. There are various lessons that they need to learn, and techniques that they develop through their education that combine to give them the necessary skills to write their professional exams. However, the education of an architect is not a process that is simple or straight-forward, and there are a series of other elements that, combined with this basic knowledge, ultimately create contemporary architects. Qualities like individual development, experience, emotional response, personal attitudes, and behaviours are not elements that are going to show up in any architecture school’s brochure, but their effect on the student is just as important as the knowledge that he or she will require to practice. To date, pedagogical inquiry into architecture seems to take two views: either looking at educational techniques and courses; or focusing on the detrimental symptoms of the less-tangible elements mentioned above. This thesis will bridge these two areas by researching the educational process and combining this knowledge with the important but more subjective areas of individual development. Through this study a clearer understanding of the profession will emerge, creating an opportunity for it to improve in the future.

The following study explores the relation between psychosocial work environment and individual health. The purpose is to examine how female employees in the occupational health sector experience their own psychosocial work environment, focusing on different influencing factors in both the workplace and their private life regarding the employees own health. The study applies a hermeneutic approach in which qualitative interviews constitute the empirical data. Previous research on this particular subject has focused on the following themes: the combination of work-family life, demand/control model and flexibility in the workplace in relation to health and stress. The theoretical framework used in this study integrates relevant concepts, specifically SOC, poor leadership and flexibility. The main findings of this study are three fundamental themes prevalent in the employees experience of health and stress: meeting the demands of the psychosocial work environment, the psychosocial work environment related to balance in everyday life  and the managements role of the psychosocial work environment. One major contribution on the research on psychosocial work environment and work-life balance is that the results presented underline the importance of a female perspective on welfare and individual wellness.