DEFENSE OF THESIS EVALUATION GUIDE



The Balancing Act: Exploring Family and Career Interface Issues in an Urban Family By Sylvia AssiamahPresented to Professor, Nayna PhilipsenIn partial fulfillment of the requirements ofNURS 512, Urban Family Theory and ResearchCoppin State UniversityHelene Fuld School of NursingApril 28, 2013TitleThe Balancing Act: Exploring Family and Career Interface Issues in an Urban Family IntroductionProblem. Maintaining a family life and career can pose considerable challenges for an urban family. How does one choose between two equally important facets of their life? Surely it is no easy task. For some, this might seem an easy thing to do, but in reality the choice is not as easy. While some people may decide to choose one or the other as a priority, most people strive to find a balance. The inability of an urban family to find a balance between a career and family, may lead to stress, resentment, and in some cases a sense of loss when a family has to let go of career goals in order to fulfill family goals or vice versa. Slan-Jerusalim and Chen (2009) write “competing demands arising from one’s involvement in various roles can create work-family conflict because of the hindrances to the individual’s ability to fulfill multiple role requirements”. Significance. It is important that nurses and family nurse practitioners assess patients during each visit or interaction, for any work and family conflicts, which may be generating stress for the patient or family. By performing an assessment in regards to conflicts, nurses and nurse practitioners can refer the patient or family to the appropriate specialist or department for help. The variables to be studied for this research; are career and family, and the focus of the study will be an urban family. The author chose this topic and population because stress created by career and family conflict can lead to poor health and development outcomes on the family. The focus of literature review for this study will be directed towards research articles on how career and family goal conflicts impact the family.The Review of the LiteratureThere is an abundance of literature to support the notion that career and family goals can cause conflicts in a family. In the distant past, women were likely to be stay home mothers, caring for the children, while the father went to work. Times have indeed changed and more women are combining family and career goals. However, regardless of gender, deciding between career and family can generate conflict which may have long-life consequences on the individual, and the family as a whole.The contextual framework for the proposed study will be based on Ruben Hill’s Family Stress theory, and Betty Neuman’s Health Care Systems Model. Hill’s theory, developed in 1949, analyzed and contrasted how families dealt with stress brought on by the Great Depression. As families work to achieve a balance, in career and family life, the family stress theory can be used to assess key stressors, and how the family can work together as a unit to overcome or succumb to stress. The main tenet of Hill’s theory is epitomized by the ABCX model. Hill’s theory is fairly simple to understand, it fits into the practice of nursing. According to Friedman, Bowden and Jones (2003), “the model emphasizes that perception of stressor(s) is more important than objective reality, and by identifying resources and strengths, family nursing approaches that empowers families can be developed”. Neuman’s health care systems model recognizes the client as an open system, who engages in an open engagement with the external environment. The major aspects of Neuman’s model are physiological, psychological, developmental and spiritual variables. Conflicts created by family and career goals can create “stressors that affect its stability and threaten its state of wellness” (Friedman, Bowden & Jones, 2003).In a research article, Liu and Hynes (2012) writes, “work and family are two demanding institutions that require substantial energy”. It can be overwhelming, and some give up one or the other to resolve any conflict. However, the conflict may never be resolved because giving up on one dream to fulfill the other does not generate the same fulfillment as achieving a balance. In fact research on this topic suggests that when families work together to arrange for things like work schedules, childcare arrangements, and family leisure activities, they have a better chance at career and family conflict resolution. Maintaining a career-family balance requires flexibility. Hartley (2007) argues that families “must by and large adapt their survival strategies, in order to accommodate the demands of the labor market”. Certainly, this does not mean giving up on family goals, in fact some “employers may be keen to offer some concessions to professionally skilled employees, especially if an investment has already been made in their training and careers” (Hartley, 2007). The crucial element is to know your worth, be assertive and flexible with your demands. Lallukka et al. (2010) identified in their research that “work–family conflicts are associated with poor health”. The stress of career conflicts can lead to unhealthy behaviors such as cigarette smoking, lack of physical activity, heavy drinking, and unhealthy dietary patterns. These unhealthy behaviors become an escape route for handling career-family conflicts, and they can pose serious health consequences for the individual and the family. Times have changed for the better. For instance, women are no longer expected to be stay home mothers while their husbands go off to work. It is important for employees and employers to work together to find resolutions to career-family conflicts. According to Rosenbaum (2008) “this requires leadership and workplace policies that create environments allowing employees to be involved with their families and also be professionals, without any hindrances. The potential stress career-conflict caused by families with pre-school children was the focus of research study by Gassman-Pines (2011). The pre-school years of children are very important and set the stage for future developmental milestones. Parents, especially mothers who spend more time away from their children because of work, may cause a strain on family roles, which can lead to a negative consequence for the family. HypothesesThe hypothesis is that; career-family conflicts can induce stress on an urban family. The MethodologyThe proposed study will be a descriptive quantitative research. Burns & Grove (2009) argue that “a descriptive design study may be used to develop theory, identify problems with current practice, justify current practice, or determine what others in similar situations are doing”. The design of the proposed study is simple descriptive, with no treatment or intervention to the variables. The proposed study sample will include a convenient sample of 30 - 50 professionals, aged between 28-45years old, who live in an urban community, and also have a family. The goal is to identify how these families balance the demands of their career and their family lives. The cost of this study is estimated to be around $100.00. The anticipated expenses will involve typing, printing, photocopying, and post mail. Questionnaires will be mailed to the identified population, with a pre-stamped returned envelope. The answers generated will not be used in any other aptitude, except to provide nurses, nurse practitioners and other healthcare providers an effective tool to assess patients and their family for evidence of stress caused by career-family goals, and to provide appropriate interventions and referrals. Theoretical Definitions The Census of Bureau defines family as a “householder and one or more people living in the same household who are related to the householder by birth, marriage, or adoption. All people in a household who are related to the householder are regarded as members of his or her family” (Evans, Price & Barron, 2001). The traditional view or definition of family has changed and continues to change. Families are no longer defined by blood ties. They may include the nuclear, the extended, and in most recent times the alternative family ties. Career is defined as “the sequence and variety of occupations (paid and unpaid) which one undertakes throughout a lifetime. More broadly, 'career ' includes life roles, leisure activities, learning and work” ("What is a,”) Operational DefinitionsFor the purpose of this study, family and career interface issues will be measured using the Work-to-Family Conflict Scale developed by Netemeyer, Boles, and McMurrian (1996). The scale consists of a 5 question item measured on a 7 point Likert scale. The scale has been used in numerous research studies documenting different work-family conflict, and the impact of work and family interference. ReferencesBurns, N., & Grove, S. K. (2009). The practice of nursing research: Appraisal, synthesis, and generation of evidence. (6 ed., pp. 237-239). St. Louis, Missouri: Saunders Elsevier.Evans, D. L., Price, J. L., & Barron, W. G. (2001). Profiles of general demographic characteristics. Retrieved from , A. (2011). Low-income mothers' nighttime and weekend work: Daily associations with child behavior, mother-child interactions, and mood. Family Relations, 60(1), 15-29.Hartley, D. (2007). Tipping the balance: The problematic nature of work-life balance in a low- income neighborhood. Journal of Social Policy, 36, 519-537.Liu, S., & Hynes, K. (2012). Are difficulties balancing work and family associated with subsequent fertility? Family Relations, 61(1), 16-30.Lallukka, T., Chandola, T., Roos, E., Cable, N., Sekine, M., Kagamimori, S., Lahelma, E. (2010). Work-family conflicts and health behaviors among British, Finnish, and Japanese employees. International Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 17(2), 134-emeyer, R.G., Boles, J.S., & McMurrian, R. (1996). Development and validation of work – family conflict and family – work conflict scales, Journal of AppliedPsychology, 81 (4), 400-410.Rosenbaum, J. R. (2008). Duality. Health Affairs, 27(2), 494-499.What is a career?. (n.d.). Retrieved from students/service/career/careered-whatis.html ................
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