Methodological Considerations in Conducting Cross-National Work-Family Survey Research

Author(s):

• Jessica Bagger
• Jessica Love

Document type: Encyclopedia Entry

Appears in: Work and Family Encyclopedia

Year: 2010

Topic:

• International
• Organizations
• Public Policy
• Work and Family

Discipline:

• Business and Management

Abstract:

Although the majority of work-family field research has been conducted in Anglo-Saxon countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada (Poelmans et al., 2003), work-family research is undertaken in other countries as well. This approach of collecting data on work-family issues in a specific country or region, using existing (i.e., North American) conceptual models has proved fruitful, with studies completed in a multitude of individual countries. However, cross-national research, which compares two or more countries in the same study, is more rare. Testing existing models in different contexts is helpful in advancing our understanding of work-family issues across the globe, but actually comparing countries in the same study should prove even more useful. To date, only a few studies have employed a cross-national perspective, collecting data in two (e.g., Aryee, Fields, & Luk, 1999; Yang, Chen, Choi, & Zou, 2000) or more countries (e.g., Spector et al., 2007; Spector et al., 2004; Hill, Yang, Hawkins, & Ferris, 2004). With the expectation of increased interest in this stream of research, and given the rate of globalization and prevalence of organizations operating in more than one country, it is helpful to take an assessment of the current status of the field, with special attention to the methodologies used. Such research may also provide useful information for other groups such as multinational organizations and policy makers.

Link:Methodological_Considerations-Survey_Research Encyclopedia