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Work–life satisfaction in academia: myth or reality?

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Abstract

In India, there is an increasingly demanding work culture in engineering colleges. Teachers perform multiple roles which may expand and intrude into their personal lives and cause work–life imbalance. Initially, this work has compared WLS conditions among different groups of engineering and non-engineering faculty and recognized that problems at work were on the rise, upsetting personal lives of engineering faculty. There are clues of extended work schedules, relatively more workload and subsequent pressure making them tired and miss quality time to spend with their loved ones. In general, engineering faculty perceive both WFC and FWC. In particular, engineering professors perceive relatively less support and more WFC as they see more responsibilities in their careers. But, engineering assistant professors and PhDs perceive relatively more FWC as they see more responsibilities in their family lives. Predictive analyses show that SWLS and WFC are predictors of both engineering and non-engineering faculty WLS, having significant positive and negative impact, respectively. Recent study substantiates that job and family satisfaction of academicians in higher education decreases and increases due to work–family conflict and work–family facilitation, respectively (Murugan and Jayanth in Curr Psychol 36:193–202, 2017a. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-015-9400-4; Curr Psychol 36:812–822, 2017b. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-016-9470-y). Data were collected through personally administered questionnaire forms comprised of four constructs, viz. support for work–life satisfaction (SWLS), work-to-family conflict (WFC), family-to-work conflict (FWC) and work–life satisfaction (WLS). This study performed comparative and predictive analyses of the opinions supplied by a random sample of 931 faculty members working in engineering colleges in Krishna District of Andhra Pradesh. Implications were discussed at the end, which may help reduce work–family conflicts and enhance faculty functioning.

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Acknowledgements

This work is part of the minor research project financially supported by the University Grants Commission—South Eastern Regional Office, Hyderabad. Ref. No: F MRP-7078/16 (SERO/UGC). The author gratefully acknowledges the financial support received from the UGC-SERO.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Management Studies, Lakireddy Balireddy College of Engineering (Autonomous), Krishna District, Mylavaram, Andhra Pradesh, 521230, India

    Srinivas Lakkoju

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  1. Srinivas Lakkoju
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Correspondence to Srinivas Lakkoju.

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Appendix

Appendix

Questionnaire

Using the options given below, please provide your suitable answers:

Strongly agree (5); agree (4); neutral (3); disagree (2); strongly disagree (1)

  1. A.

    Support for work–life satisfaction and balance

    1. 1.

      You have complete support from your family for your career.

    2. 2.

      You have complete support of your management for your career.

    3. 3.

      You have complete support from your colleagues for your career.

    4. 4.

      Your management provides WLS/B policies or programmes.

      (Yoga, gym, stress management workshops, convenient transportation, reduced working hours, flexible work schedules, job sharing, career breaks/sabbaticals, picnics, medical facilities, etc.)

    5. 5.

      You are currently using the work–life policies or programmes provided by your management.

    6. 6.

      Your management supports you at times of personal emergencies.

  2. B.

    Work-to-family conflict

    1. 1.

      You usually miss out quality time with your family and friends due to work pressure.

    2. 2.

      You feel that you are spending too much time at work.

    3. 3.

      Your job makes you feel too tired to do the things that need attention at home.

    4. 4.

      Your job reduces the effort that you can give to activities at home.

    5. 5.

      You often think and worry about your work when you are not at work.

    6. 6.

      You usually feel tired and depressed by the end of the working day.

    7. 7.

      You suffer from stress related diseases like BP, obesity, diabetes, headaches, etc.

    8. 8.

      You have had problems in your family life due to work pressure.

  3. C.

    Family-to-work conflict

    1. 1.

      Responsibilities at home reduce the effort, you can devote to your job.

    2. 2.

      Personal or family worries and problems distract you when you are at work.

    3. 3.

      Too many responsibilities at home make you irritable at work.

    4. 4.

      Activities and responsibilities at home prevent you from getting the amount of sleep you need to do your job well.

  4. D.

    Work–life satisfaction/balance

    1. 1.

      You are happy with your job/career.

    2. 2.

      Your working hours are comfortable to work.

    3. 3.

      You spend most of your time doing what is most important to you.

    4. 4.

      You get enough sleep, exercise and healthy food.

    5. 5.

      You spend as much time as you would like with your loved ones.

    6. 6.

      You are living an ideal life.

    7. 7.

      Overall, your work–life is completely balanced.

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Lakkoju, S. Work–life satisfaction in academia: myth or reality?. Decision 47, 153–176 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40622-020-00243-9

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