Abstract
Despite the rich literature on work-family concerns, few studies have addressed the indirect effects of perfectionism on work-family conflict through coping strategies and automatic thoughts, and there is scarce research on the topic in Saudi Arabia. The aim of this research was to investigate the relationship between perfectionism and work-family conflict, and to explore potential mediation roles of coping strategies and positive automatic thoughts among Saudi employees. A sample of 1041 workers with families (44.4% females) were recruited and were administered the Work-Family Conflict Scale, the Situational Version of the Brief COPE questionnaire, the Short Form of the Revised Almost Perfect Scale, and the Automatic Thoughts Questionnaire. A set of path analyses were performed using structural equation modelling. Standard and discrepancy perfectionism were positively associated with work to family conflict, but only discrepancy was associated with family to work conflict. Furthermore, active coping, seeking social support, evasive coping, and positive automatic thoughts acted as important paths through which these relationships operate. In conclusion, workplace and HR managers should plan programs and interventions to train employees regarding personality traits, effective coping, and positive thinking.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Data availability
The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
References
Ahmad, A. (2008). Job, family and individual factors as predictors of work-family conflict. The Journal of Human Resource and Adult Learning, 4(1), 57–65.
Akanbi, Samuel Toyin. (2016). Contributions of perfectionism and social support to the prediction of work-family conflict among women academics in Oyo State, Nigeria. Gender and Behaviour, 14(1), 7182–7196.
Allen, T. D., & Armstrong, J. (2006). Further examination of the Link between Work-Family Conflict and Physical Health: the role of Health-Related behaviors. American Behavioral Scientist, 49(9), 1204–1221. https://doi.org/10.1177/0002764208316324
Anafarta, N., & Kuruüzüm, A. (2012). Demographic predictors of work-family conflict for men and women: turkish case. International Journal of Business and Management, 7(13), 145–158. https://doi.org/10.5539/ijbm.v7n13p145
Aryee, S., Luk, V., Leung, A., & Lo, S. (1999). Role stressors, Interrole Conflict, and Well-Being: the moderating influence of spousal support and coping behaviors among employed parents in Hong Kong. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 54(2), 259–278. https://doi.org/10.1006/jvbe.1998.1667
Bakker, A. B., & Schaufeli, W. B. (2008). Positive organizational behavior: engaged employees in flourishing organizations. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 29(2), 147–154. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.515
Bedeian, A. G., Burke, B. G., & Moffett, R. G. (1988). Outcomes of work-family conflict among Married Male and female professionals. Journal of Management, 14(3), 475–491. https://doi.org/10.1177/014920638801400310
Blatt, S. J. (1995). The destructiveness of perfectionism: implications for the treatment of depression. American Psychologist, 50(12), 1003–1020. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.50.12.1003
Boyraz, G., & Lightsey, O. R., Jr. (2012). Can positive thinking help? Positive automatic thoughts as moderators of the stress?meaning relationship. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 82(2), 267–277. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1939-0025.2012.01150.x
Byron, K. (2005). A meta-analytic review of work-family conflict and its antecedents. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 67(2), 169–198. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2004.08.009
Caliskan, S. C., Arikan, S. C., & Saatci, E. Y. (2014). SMEs context of Turkey from the Relational Perspective of Members ’ perfectionism, Work Family Conflict and Burnout. International Journal of Business and Social Science, 5(4), 129–140.
Chang, E. C., Watkins, A. F., & Banks, K. H. (2004). How adaptive and maladaptive perfectionism relate to positive and negative psychological functioning: testing a stress-mediation model in Black and White female college student. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 51(1), 93–102. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0167.51.1.93
Cronin-Stubbs, D., & Brophy, E. B. (1985). Burnout: can social support save the psych nurse? Journal of Psychosocial Nursing and Mental Health Services, 23(7), https://doi.org/10.3928/0279-3695-19850701-06
Dartey-Baah, K. (2015). Work-family conflict, demographic characteristics and job satisfaction among ghanaian corporate leaders. International Journal of Business, 20(4), 292–307.
Deuling, J. K., & Burns, L. (2017). Perfectionism and work-family conflict: self-esteem and self-efficacy as mediator. Personality and Individual Differences, 116, 326–330. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2017.05.013
Duxbury, L. E., & Higgins, C. A. (1991). Gender differences in work^family conflict. Journal of Applied Psychology, 76(1), 60–73. https://doi.org/10.1037//0021-9010.76.1.60
Eagle, B. W., Icenogle, M. L., Maes, J. D., & Miles, E. W. (1998). The importance of employee demographic profiles for understanding experiences of work-family interrole conflicts. Journal of Social Psychology, 138(6), 690–709. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224549809603255
Eby, L. T., Casper, W. J., Lockwood, A., Bordeaux, C., & Brinley, A. (2005). Work and family research in IO/OB: content analysis and review of the literature (1980–2002). Journal of Vocational Behavior, 66(1), 124–197. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2003.11.003
Flett, G. L., Hewitt, P. L., Blankstein, K. R., & Mosher, S. W. (1995). Perfectionism, life events, and depressive symptoms: a test of a diathesis-stress model. Current Psychology, 14(2), 112–137. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02686885
Frone, M. R. (2000). Work-family conflict and employee psychiatric disorders: the national comorbidity survey. Journal of Applied Psychology, 85(6), 888–895. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.85.6.888
Frone, M. R. (2003). Work-family balance. In J. C. Quick & L. E. Tetrick (Eds.), Handbook of occupational health psychology (pp. 143–162). https://doi.org/10.1037/10474-007
Frost, R. O., Marten, P., Lahart, C., & Rosenblate, R. (1990). The dimensions of perfectionism. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 14(5), 449–468. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01172967
Fry, P. S. (1995). Perfectionism, humor, and optimism as moderators of health outcomes and determinants of coping styles of women executives. Genetic Social and General Psychology Monographs, 121(2), 211–245.
Garcia-Arroyo, J. A., & Osca, A. (2017). Coping with burnout: analysis of linear, non-linear and interaction relationships. Anales de Psicología, 33(3), 722–731.
Goodman, E. A., & Boss, R. W. (2002). The phase model of burnout and employee turnover. Journal of Health and Human Services Administration, 25(1), 33–47.
Greenhaus, J. H., Parasuraman, S., & Collins, K. M. (2001). Career involvement and family involvement as moderators of relationships between work-family conflict and withdrawal from a profession. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 6(2), 91–100. https://doi.org/10.1037/1076-8998.6.2.91
Greenhaus, J. H., & Beutell, N. J. (1985). Sources of conflict between work and family roles. Academy of Management Review, 10(1), 76–88. https://doi.org/10.5465/AMR.1985.4277352
Grzywacz, J. G., & Bass, B. L. (2003). Work, Family, and Mental Health: testing different models of work-family fit. Journal of Marriage and Family, 65(1), 248–261. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2003.00248.x
Haslam, D., Filus, A., Morawska, A., Sanders, M. R., & Fletcher, R. (2014). The work–family conflict scale (WAFCS): development and initial validation of a self-report measure of work–family conflict for use with parents. Child Psychiatry And Human Development. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-014-0476-0
Hewitt, P. L., & Flett, G. L. (1991). Perfectionism in the Self and Social Contexts: Conceptualization, Assessment, and Association with psychopathology. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 60(3), 456–470. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.60.3.456
Holahan, C. K., & Gilbert, L. A. (1979). Interrole conflict for working women: Careers versus jobs. Journal of Applied Psychology, 64(1), 86–90. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.64.1.86
Hu, L., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling, 6, 1–55. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705519909540118
Ihaka, R., & Gentleman, R. (1996). R: a Language for Data Analysis and Graphics. Journal of Computational and Graphical Statistics, 5(3), 299–314. https://doi.org/10.1080/10618600.1996.10474713
Ingram, R. E., & Wisnicki, K. (1988). Assessment of positive automatic cognition. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 56(6), 898–902. https://doi.org/10.1037//0022-006X.56.6.898
Jackson, M. A., Tal, A. I., & Sullivan, A. R. (2016). Hidden biases in counseling women: balancing work and family concerns. In M. Kopala, & M. A. Keitel (Eds.), Handbook of counseling women (pp. 152–172). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Janssen, O., & Yperen, N. W. V. A. N. (2004). Employees’ goal orientations, the Quality of Leader-Member Exchange, and the outcomes of job performance and job satisfaction. Academy of Management Journal, 47(3), 368–384. https://doi.org/10.5465/20159587
Judge, T. A., Ilies, R., & Scott, B. A. (2006). Work-family conflict and emotions: Effects at work and at home. Personnel Psychology, 59(4), 779–814. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.2006.00054.x
Kelloway, E. K., Gottlieb, B. H., & Barham, L. (1999). The source, nature, and direction of work and family conflict: a longitudinal investigation. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 4(4), 337–346. https://doi.org/10.1037/1076-8998.4.4.337
kiamarsi, & taherifard (2020). Comparing Self-Compassion, sense of coherence and positive thinking in the students with and without clinical perfectionism. Clinical Psychology and Personality, 18(1), 29–42. https://doi.org/10.22070/cpap.2020.2920
Knoll, N., Rieckmann, N., & Schwarzer, R. (2005). Coping as a mediator between personality and stress outcomes: a longitudinal study with cataract surgery patients. European Journal of Personality, 19(3), 229–247. https://doi.org/10.1002/per.546
Koenig, H. G. (1995). Religion and older men in prison. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 10(3), 219–230. https://doi.org/10.1002/gps.930100308
Kossek, E. E., & Ozeki, C. (1998). Work-family conflict, policies, and the job-life satisfaction relationship: a review and directions for organizational behavior-human resources research. Journal of Applied Psychology, 83(2), 139–149. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.83.2.139
Kossek, E., Lewis, S., & Hammer, L. (2010). Work–life initiatives and organizational change: overcoming mixed messages to move from the margin to the mainstream. Human Relations, 63(1), 3–19.
Larijani, R., & Besharat, M. A. (2010). Perfectionism and coping styles with stress. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 5, 623–627. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2010.07.154
Lazarus, R. S. (1999). Hope: An Emotion and a Vital Coping Resource Against Despair.Social Research, 66(2).
Lazarus, R. S., & Folkman, S. (1984). Stress: Appraisal and Coping. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-39903-0_215
Lightsey, O. R. (1994). “Thinking positive” as a stress buffer: The role of positive automatic cognitions in depression and happiness. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 41(3), 325–334. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0167.41.3.325
Lishinski, A. (2020). lavaanPlot 0.5.1. Retrieved December 1, 2021, from https://www.alexlishinski.com/post/lavaanplot-0-5-1/
Lo, A., & Abbott, M. J. (2013). Review of the theoretical, empirical, and clinical status of adaptive and maladaptive perfectionism. Behaviour Change, 30(2), 96–116. https://doi.org/10.1017/bec.2013.9
MacKinnon, D. P., & Fairchild, A. J. (2009). Current directions in mediation analysis. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 18(1), 16–20. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8721.2009.01598.x
Mäkelä, L., & Suutari, V. (2011). Coping with work-family conflicts in the global career context. Thunderbird International Business Review, 53(3), 365–375. https://doi.org/10.1002/tie.20414
Matsui, T., Ohsawa, T., Onglatco, M., & Lou (1995). Work-family conflict and the stress-buffering effects of husband support and coping behavior among japanese married working women. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 47, 178–192. https://doi.org/10.1006/jvbe.1995.1034
Matthews, L. S., Conger, R. D., & Wickrama, K. A. S. (1996). Work-Family Conflict and Marital Quality: Mediating Processes. Social Psychology, 59(1), 62–78. Retrieved from https://www.jstor.org/stable/2488561
Maxwell, S. E., & Cole, D. A. (2007). Bias in cross-sectional analyses of longitudinal mediation. Psychological Methods, 12(1), 23–44. https://doi.org/10.1037/1082-989X.12.1.23
Maxwell, S. E., Cole, D. A., & Mitchell, M. A. (2011). Bias in cross-sectional analyses of longitudinal mediation: partial and complete mediation under an autoregressive model. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 46(5), 816–841. https://doi.org/10.1080/00273171.2011.606716
Mitchelson, J. K. (2009). Seeking the perfect balance: Perfectionism and work?family conflict. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 82(2), 349–367. https://doi.org/10.1348/096317908X314874
Molineux, J., Fraser, A., & Carr, R. (2013). The impact of positive thinking and other techniques on transition experiences from work to home for reducing work-family conflict. Anzam, 1–22. Retrieved from https://www.anzam.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/96_ANZAM-2013-209.pdf
Monzani, D., Steca, P., Greco, A., Addario, M. D., & Cappelletti, E. (2015). The situational version of the brief COPE: Dimensionality and Relationships with goal-related variables Research Reports the situational version of the brief COPE : Dimensionality and Relationships with goal-related variables. Europe’s Journal of Psychology, 11(2), 295–310. https://doi.org/10.5964/ejop.v11i2.935
Ng, A. (2021). Saudi Arabia sees a spike in women joining the workforce, Brookings study shows. CNBC. Retrieved from https://www.cnbc.com/2021/04/29/saudi-arabia-sees-a-spike-in-women-joining-the-workforce-study-says.html
Pacht, A. R. (1984). Reflections on perfection. American Psychologist, 39(4), 386–390. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.39.4.386
Palupi, R., & Findyartini, A. (2019). The relationship between gender and coping mechanisms with burnout events in first-year medical students. Korean Journal of Medical Education, 31(4), 331–342. https://doi.org/10.3946/kjme.2019.143
Parasuraman, S., & Simmers, C. A. (2001). Type of employment, work–family conflict and well-being: a comparative study. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 22(5), 551–568. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.102
Peterson, C. (2006). Positive thinking and positive psychology. New York: Oxford University Press.
Philpot, V. D., & Bamburg, J. W. (1996). Rehearsal of positive self-statements and restructured negative self-statements to increase self-esteem and decrease depression. Psychological Reports, 79(1), 83–91. https://doi.org/10.2466/pr0.1996.79.1.83
Pleck, J. H., G. L. Staines and L. Lang. (1980). Conflicts Between Work and Family Life. Monthly Labor Review, 103, 29–32.
Podsakoff, P., MacKenzie, S., Lee, J., & Podsakoff, N. (2003). Common method biases in behavioral research: a critical review of the literature and recommended remedies. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88(5), 879–903.
Radhu, N., Daskalakis, Z. J., Arpin-Cribbie, C. A., Irvine, J., & Ritvo, P. (2012). Evaluating a Web-based cognitive-behavioral therapy for maladaptive perfectionism in university students. Journal of American college health: J of ACH, 60(5), 357–366. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2011.630703
Rantanen, M., Mauno, S., Kinnunen, U., & Rantanen, J. (2011). Do individual coping strategies help or harm in the Work-Family Conflict Situation? Examining coping as a moderator between work-family conflict and well-being. International Journal of Stress Management, 18(1), 24–48. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0022007
Recuero, L. H., & Segovia, A. O. (2021). Work-family conflict, coping strategies and burnout: a gender and couple analysis. Revista de Psicologia Del Trabajo y de Las Organizaciones, 37(1), 21–28. https://doi.org/10.5093/JWOP2021A5
Rice, K. G., Richardson, C. M. E., & Tueller, S. (2014). The short form of the revised almost perfect scale the short form of the revised almost perfect scale. Journal of Personality Assessment, 96(3), 368–379. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223891.2013.838172
Rodríguez, I., Kozusznik, M., Nuria, T., & Peiró, J. M. (2019). Individual, co-active and collective coping and organizational stress: a longitudinal study. European Management Journal, 37(1), 86–98.
Rosseel, Y. (2011). lavaan: an R package for structural equation modeling and more Version 0. 5–10 (BETA). Retrieved from http://users.ugent.be/~yrosseel/lavaan/lavaanIntroduction.pdf
Rotondo, D. M., & Kincaid, J. F. (2008). Conflict, facilitation, and individual coping styles across the work and family domains. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 23(5), 484–506. https://doi.org/10.1108/02683940810884504
Sanz-Vergel, A. I., Demerouti, E., Bakker, A. B., & Moreno-Jiménez, B. (2011). Daily detachment from work and home: the moderating effect of role salience. Human Relations, 64(6), 775–799. https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726710393368
Shin, H., Park, Y. M., Ying, J. Y., Kim, B., Noh, H., & Lee, S. M. (2014). Relationships between coping strategies and burnout symptoms: a meta-analytic approach. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 45(1), 44–56. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0035220
Slaney, R. B., Rice, K. G., Mobley, M., Trippi, J., & Ashby, J. S. (2001). The revised almost perfect scale. Measurement and Evaluation in Counseling and Development, 34(3), 130–145. https://doi.org/10.1080/07481756.2002.12069030
Somech, A., & Drach-Zahavy, A. (2007). Strategies for coping with work-family conflict: the distinctive relationships of gender role ideology. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 12(1), 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1037/1076-8998.12.1.1
Stoeber, J., & Rennert, D. (2008). Perfectionism in school teachers: relations with stress appraisals, coping styles, and burnout. Anxiety Stress and Coping, 21(1), 37–53. https://doi.org/10.1080/10615800701742461
Voydanoff, P. (2005). Work demands and work-to-family and family-to-work conflict: direct and indirect relationships. Journal of Family Issues, 26(6), 707–726. https://doi.org/10.1177/0192513X05277516
Acknowledgements
The authors acknowledge with thanks to the Deanship of Scientific Research (DSR), at King Abdulaziz University (KAU), Jeddah, Saudi Arabia for their technical and financial support.
Funding
The Deanship of Scientific Research (DSR), at King Abdulaziz University (KAU), Jeddah, Saudi Arabia has funded this Project under grant no.(G:326-253-1443).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
All authors made a substantial, direct, and intellectual contribution to the work and approved it for publication.
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Ethics approval
Ethical approval to conduct this research study was provided by King Abdulaziz University in Saudi Arabia. All procedures performed in this study were in accordance with the ethical standards of King Abdulaziz University and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.
Consent to participate
Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study, and participation was completely voluntary.
Conflict of interest
The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare that are relevant to the content of this article.
Additional information
Publisher’s note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
About this article
Cite this article
Sarour, E.O., El Sayed El Keshky, M. Almost perfect? Perfectionism and work-family conflict in saudi workers: the contributions of coping strategies and positive automatic thoughts. Curr Psychol 42, 30715–30725 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-022-04053-3
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-022-04053-3