Work–Family Boundary Management Profiles in Two Finnish Samples: A Person-oriented Approach

Abstract

Background: The present study aims to identify different work-family boundary management profiles among Finnish employees, and examine how these relate to conflict between work and family or their mutual enrichment. Method: Participants from two samples, one consisting of university staff (n1 = 1,139) and another of nurses (n2 = 271), were asked to respond to an online survey concerning work-family boundary management, work-to-family enrichment, and work-to-family conflict scales. Results: A cluster analysis identified three profiles in both samples: segmentors, integrators and favoring family over work in the university sample, and segmentors, integrators and favoring work over family in the nurse sample. In both samples integrators experienced a higher level of work-to-family enrichment and a lower level of work-to-family conflict in comparison to segmentors. Conclusion: Individuals with a tendency to integrate work and family domains experience higher work to family enrichment and lower work to family conflict compared to those who separate work and family domains.