Analyzing three waves of the Canadian Work Stress and Health Study with cross-lagged models, we asked: (1) How do two distinct directions of strain in the work-family interface—work-to-family conflict and family-to-work conflict—mediate the relationship between financial strain and psychological distress? and (2) Is reverse causality a possibility in these dynamics? Our results indicate that work-to-family conflict at Wave 2 mediates the relationship between financial strain at Wave 1 and distress at Wave 3, but family-to-work conflict does not function as a mediator. Financial strain is therefore indirectly associated with subsequently higher levels of distress. In tests for reverse causality, we found little evidence that distress is associated with subsequently higher levels of financial strain—and neither work-to-family conflict nor family-to-work conflict at Wave 2 mediates that relationship. We interpret our findings within the conceptual and empirical ideas associated with stress proliferation, social causation, and social selection/drift.

我们使用交叉滞后模型分析了加拿大工作压力与健康研究的三波浪，我们问：（1）工作与家庭之间的紧张关系如何两个不同的方向-工作与家庭之间的冲突以及家庭与工作之间的冲突-调解财务压力和心理困扰之间的关系？（2）在这些动态中是否存在反向因果关系？我们的结果表明，第2浪中的工作与家庭之间的冲突介导了第1浪中的财务压力与第3浪中的困境之间的关系，但家庭与工作之间的冲突并未起到中介作用。因此，财务压力与随后更高的苦难程度间接相关。在反向因果关系测试中，我们发现很少有证据表明，困扰与随后更高水平的财务压力相关，并且在第二波中，工作与家庭之间的冲突或家庭与工作之间的冲突都没有调解这种关系。我们在与压力扩散，社会因果关系和社会选择/漂移相关的概念和实证思想中解释我们的发现。