Examining the relationship of work–family conflict to job and life satisfaction: A case of hotel sales managers [Summary]

The study was designed to clarify the ambivalent relationships between work-family conflict (WFC) and measures of satisfaction. Both the direct and indirect effects of WFC on job and life satisfaction were investigated. Job satisfaction was also separated into two components: affective reaction and cognitive appraisal. Data were collected by a field survey of 121 sales managers from 26 hotels in China. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) indicated a critical role of one's affective reaction to his/her job in the relationship between WFC and life satisfaction. Specifically, the present study found that both work interfering with family (WIF) and family interfering with work (FIW) have a significant negative association with an individual's affective reaction to his/her job, while only FIW reduced the cognitive appraisal of a job. Further, effective reaction, rather than the cognitive appraisal, had a significant positive correlation with life satisfaction. Finally, FIW was negatively associated with life satisfaction. The results suggest the strategic role of family-friendly human resource policies in hotels.