Easing the Pain: A Cross-Cultural Study of Support Resources and Their Influence on Work-Family Conflict

The purpose of this chapter is to present the results of a cross-cultural study examining various resources that help individuals cope with competing demands from the work and family domains. To enhance our understanding of work-family conflict in different countries, we conducted focus groups in China, Hong Kong, Mexico, Singapore, and the United States. Integrating findings from the focus groups with those from the literature, we developed a classification system for organizing support resources. Domain-specific support resources include social and instrumental forms of support within the family and work/organizational domains. Domain-spanning resources include personal resources such as individual values and differences (i.e., self-reliance) and national resources such as laws that affect work and family systems. Cross-cultural comparisons are made and implications for researchers and organizations are discussed.