Opening the doors for spillovers: a contingency view of the effects of work from home on the work–home interface

Bölingen, Felix; Hermida Carrillo, Alejandro und Weller, Ingo (5. Juli 2023): Opening the doors for spillovers: a contingency view of the effects of work from home on the work–home interface. In: Frontiers in Psychology, Bd. 14: S. 1-14

Abstract

Why do employees experience work from home (WFH) differently? We draw on boundary theory to explain how WFH influences employees’ work–home interface. WFH intensity increases negative spillovers (i.e., work-to-home conflict and home-to-work conflict) and positive spillovers (i.e., work-to-home enrichment and home-to-work enrichment) between the work and home domains. Negative spillovers can be mitigated through high-quality work equipment and beneficial spatial conditions at home. Domain centrality predicts who can benefit from increased WFH intensity. We test our theory with a sample of 545 employees, obtained through a two-step random sampling procedure in the city of Munich/Germany during the COVID-19 pandemic. We find that WFH intensity increases work-to-home conflict and home-to-work enrichment, affecting employees’ relationship satisfaction and job satisfaction. High-quality work equipment mitigates the detrimental effects of WFH. Employees with a high family centrality can reap benefits of more WFH because they experience more home-to-work enrichment. The simultaneous desirable and detrimental effects of WFH intensity can partly explain why studies have found heterogenous WFH experiences among employees.

• Dokumententyp: Zeitschriftenartikel
• Keywords: Work–home interface; job satisfaction; relationship satisfaction; work from home; technology
• Fakultät: Betriebswirtschaft > Institute for Human Capital Management
• Themengebiete: 300 Sozialwissenschaften > 330 Wirtschaft
• ISSN: 1664-1078
• Sprache: Englisch