{"title":"Losing my job and family? How power shapes the boundaries between work and family life","authors":"Mohammed Yekini , Bomanaziba Idiko , Anastasia Kulichyova , Rekha Rao-Nicholson","doi":"10.1016/j.jbusres.2025.115316","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Job insecurity is often understood as the perceived powerlessness to maintain desired continuity in one’s job, and experiences of it can have significant implications for both work and family life. Despite the crucial role of power in conceptualising the effects of job insecurity, little is known regarding the role of power dependence in the relationship between job insecurity and work-family enrichment. To address this gap, we analysed three-wave data from 267 UK white-collar employees to test a model linking job insecurity to work-family enrichment. Our findings reveal that (1) job insecurity negatively impacts work-family enrichment, (2) approach and avoidance power-balancing operations mediate this relationship, and (3) the negative effect is weaker when psychological contract breach is low. This study advances theoretical understanding by demonstrating that asymmetric power dependence is a critical factor in determining when and why job insecurity diminishes work-family enrichment.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":15123,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Business Research","volume":"192 ","pages":"Article 115316"},"PeriodicalIF":10.5000,"publicationDate":"2025-03-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Business Research","FirstCategoryId":"91","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0148296325001390","RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"BUSINESS","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Job insecurity is often understood as the perceived powerlessness to maintain desired continuity in one’s job, and experiences of it can have significant implications for both work and family life. Despite the crucial role of power in conceptualising the effects of job insecurity, little is known regarding the role of power dependence in the relationship between job insecurity and work-family enrichment. To address this gap, we analysed three-wave data from 267 UK white-collar employees to test a model linking job insecurity to work-family enrichment. Our findings reveal that (1) job insecurity negatively impacts work-family enrichment, (2) approach and avoidance power-balancing operations mediate this relationship, and (3) the negative effect is weaker when psychological contract breach is low. This study advances theoretical understanding by demonstrating that asymmetric power dependence is a critical factor in determining when and why job insecurity diminishes work-family enrichment.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of Business Research aims to publish research that is rigorous, relevant, and potentially impactful. It examines a wide variety of business decision contexts, processes, and activities, developing insights that are meaningful for theory, practice, and/or society at large. The research is intended to generate meaningful debates in academia and practice, that are thought provoking and have the potential to make a difference to conceptual thinking and/or practice. The Journal is published for a broad range of stakeholders, including scholars, researchers, executives, and policy makers. It aids the application of its research to practical situations and theoretical findings to the reality of the business world as well as to society. The Journal is abstracted and indexed in several databases, including Social Sciences Citation Index, ANBAR, Current Contents, Management Contents, Management Literature in Brief, PsycINFO, Information Service, RePEc, Academic Journal Guide, ABI/Inform, INSPEC, etc.