All In Good Taste / January 2006
On Call, On Edge
A study published in the December issue of the Journal of Marriage and Family found that cell phone and pager use is yet another way that job worries and problems interfere with family life for both women and men.
The ongoing use of this kind of communications technology, versus computer-based communications like email, is linked to increased psychological distress and reduced family satisfaction. For women and men, cell phones allow job worries to spill over into home life, but only women also experience the opposite effect—the spillover of home concerns into their work life.
For women, both work and family worries and responsibilities affected their levels of distress and family satisfaction. The findings suggest that, although technology may make everyone more accessible, it does so with negative consequences, especially for women.
Noelle Chesley, is an assistant professor in the Sociology Department at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Her research focuses on the processes that link work and family roles and the outcomes associated with the intersections of these roles for contemporary workers and their families.
She interviewed working couples over two time periods, 1998-1999 and 2000-2001. The use of cell phones and pagers in that two-year time period decreased family satisfaction and increased distress. For both men and women, it increased the negative work-to-family spillover. For women, the cell phone and pager use also increased negative family-to-work spillover.
The author measured the participants’ psychological distress and she asked them to state how often in the past month they felt feelings ranging from “in good spirits” to “everything was an effort.” Participants were also asked questions such as whether they could turn to their family for help and if they were satisfied with the support they receive.
Although the implications for technology users are not likely to disappear, Dr. Chesley says, “The question of ‘blurred boundaries’ may become an irrelevant one for the next generation of workers, spouses, and parents because they cannot imagine life any other way.”
The Journal of Marriage and Family, published by the National Council on Family Relations, features original research and theory, research interpretation and reviews, and critical discussion concerning marriage, close relationships, and families.
Copyright © 2007 A Woman's View. All rights reserved.
Top • Home • Subscribe • Advertise • Submit • Distribution • Contact
Support Our Advertisers • Organization Resources • Women Owned Business
Send an Email About This Article