Many Lose Their Cool When the Worlds of Work and Home Collide
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iStock/Thinkstock(ANN ARBOR, Mich.) — Finding the perfect balance between work and family life can be as tricky as walking a tightrope, but many Americans do the best they can, often under very trying circumstances.
Now, a new University of Michigan study is among the first to examine what happens when demands at home interfere with the job.
Specifically, co-author Chu-Hsiang Chang says that when pressures of taking care of the family puts a strain on work performance, it can result in people becoming mentally worn out, which in turn often makes them verbally abusive to people at home as well as co-workers and even supervisors.
Chang reached these findings by surveying 125 employees of various info-tech businesses for four days a week over three weeks.
What might help to mitigate the problem is having a boss who understands the importance of work-family balance, thus putting fewer demands on employees, especially during their down time.
Chang adds that workers might also help themselves by taking breaks outside the office or just simply stretching to ease tension.
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