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How Telecommuters Balance Work and Their Personal Lives

<p> Past research has suggested that telecommuters can balance their work and personal lives more efficiently than their office counterparts. Researchers had not explored how telecommuters who worked for a private health insurer balanced their work and personal lives. The following aspects of telecommuting were investigated: (a) telecommuters&rsquo; expectations, (b) structure of work and home environment, and (c) handling obstacles at work and home. This qualitative phenomenological study consisted of interview data collected from a convenience sample of 19 full-time telecommuters self-selected from a population of 5,819 people who worked for a private health insurer located in the United States. The theoretical framework for the study was Herzberg&rsquo;s two-factor theory and Maslow&rsquo;s hierarchy of needs theory. Seven themes emerged: (a) maintaining a separate office in the home; (b) setting family expectations; (c) remaining task oriented and disciplined and maintaining a normal routine; (d) communicating with managers and colleagues; (e) juggling work and personal life; (f) taking breaks and lunches; and (g) taking personal time off. The results indicated that work&ndash;life balance can be achieved by (a) creating structure in the working environment, (b) gaining organizational and management support, (c) limiting personal obstacles during working hours, and (d) limiting work-related tasks during personal time.</p>

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:PROQUEST/oai:pqdtoai.proquest.com:10265943
Date10 May 2017
CreatorsMiller, Tina M.
PublisherBaker College (Michigan)
Source SetsProQuest.com
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
Typethesis

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