Abstract

ABSTRACT
An examination of relations between daily work-nonwork boundary strength, daily events and emotions
Onn-anong Ngamwattana
As individuals engage in multiple social roles (e.g. employee and parent), an understanding of how individuals manage and maintain boundaries between roles has become critical. To respond to this issue, this research focuses on boundary strength (at work and at home) by examining the relations between boundary strength in one domain and daily events in the other and the relations between boundary strength and daily emotions. A 7-day diary study was conducted; data were collected from a sample of 102 employed parents. Consistent with hypotheses, boundary strength in one domain was weaker on days when negative events occurred in the other. In contrast to predictions, boundary strength at home was found to be weaker, rather than stronger, on days when positive work events occurred. No support was found for relations between boundary strength at work and positive nonwork events. In line with hypotheses, negative correlations were found between boundary strengths (at work and at home) and negative emotions and a positive correlation was found between boundary strength at work and positive emotions, although significant results were not found for all days. No support was found for relations between boundary strength at home and positive emotions. The findings open avenues for research to further investigate antecedents of boundary strength, as well as the link between daily emotions and boundary strength. The findings also provide further support for the cross-domain relations between individuals’ work and personal lives.