The Nature of Work and the Stress of Higher Status

Abstract

Are occupational and work conditions associated with work-to-home conflict? If so, do those associations vary by gender? Among a sample of adults in Toronto, Canada, we found that men and women in higher-status occupations reported higher levels of work-to-home conflict than workers in lower-status jobs. In addition, we observed higher levels of work-to-home conflict among workers who are self-employed and among those with more job authority, demands, involvement, and longer hours. The only significant gender-contingent effect was found for nonroutine work, which is associated positively with work-to-home conflict among men but not women. Higher levels of job demands, involvement, and hours among individuals in higher-status occupations significantly contribute to occupation-based differences in work-to-home conflict. Moreover, despite some overlap, these work conditions have largely independent associations with work-to-home conflict. Results generally support the "stress of higher status " hypothesis among both women and men. Although higher-status positions yield many rewards, such positions are not impervious to inter-role stress, and this stress may offset those rewards.

Do Women in Highly Qualified Positions Face Higher Work-to-Family Conflicts in Germany than Men?

“…At the same time, it can be expected that these individuals have especially high subjective expectations on the quality of their job and its content. Therefore, the literature on this "new" problem in modern labor markets stresses highly qualified workers as an especially problematic group that is confronted with these problems to a large extent and to have a high potential for "self-exploitation" (Baethge et al, 1995;Kotthoff, 2001;Moosbrugger, 2012;Schiemann et al, 2006). Schiemann et al (2006, p. 243) calls this assumption "stress of higher status hypothesis," meaning that higher positions include several working conditions (e.g., long work hours, flexibility, as well as permeability between work and private spheres) that are costly for the workers.…”

“…The conflict aspect is gaining more and more research interest. Due to an increasing permeability of the boundaries between the life spheres of "occupational work" and "private life," managing obligations in both domains is increasingly complex and the resulting conflicts can be seen as one important and increasing problem in modern societies (Schiemann et al, 2006;Voß, 1998). In the German research, this is discussed in connection with the emergence of a new "entreployee," (Arbeitskraftunternehmer) where the employee structures and controls their own occupational work more and more independently from external organizational structures and formalizations (Pongratz & Voß, 2003).…”

“…Additionally, it can be asked if women and men in higher positions differ in their perception of this expected permeability between occupational and private sphere, with women having higher role conflicts between both parts of life, due to gender roles in modern societies that often still foster the male breadwinner model and different gender roles for women and men (for the US labor market, see Schiemann et al, 2006).…”

Gender or Occupational Status: What Counts More for Well-Being at Work?

“…Although some scholars have documented higher levels of stress among professional or managerial workers, compared to lower-status workers (Moen & You, 2000;Schieman, Whitestone, & Van Gundy, 2006), most studies yield the broad consensus that higher-status work conditions have positive effects on well-being (e.g. Booth & Van Ours, 2009;Calvo-Salguero et al, 2010;Clark, Frijters, & Shields, 2008;SalinasJiménez et al, 2013).…”

“…On the one hand, literature from a gender perspective has examined gender differences in relation to these variables, showing that -compared to men -women in most cases experience lower job satisfaction and higher work-family conflict (Calvo-Salguero et al, 2010;Cinamon & Rich, 2002;Matud, 2004;Osorio et al, 2003;Tytherleigh et al, 2007;Van Veldhoven & Beijer, 2012). On the other hand, a body of studies has driven the attention to the impact of the occupational status, demonstrating a general positive effect of high-status occupations, even with some divergent results about the influence of status on work-family conflict (Booth & Van Ours, 2009;Calvo-Saluguero et al, 2010;Clark et al, 2008;McKinlay & Marcaeu, 2011;Salinas-Jiménez et al, 2013;Schieman et al, 2006). However, with the only exception of Lyonette and colleagues (2007) about work-family conflict, research has not considered the impact of both gender and status on work-related well-being.…”