Abstract
If they want to get to the top of any company in today’s competitive economic environment, individuals today must constantly push themselves to improve. This research aims to better understand how secondary school teachers’ personal experiences with work-family conflict affect their ability to do their jobs. One hundred and three female secondary school teachers in Lahore, Pakistan, took part in the survey. The survey’s questions was closed and scored on a 5-point Likert scale. One crucial factor in our study would be the women teachers’ marital status. This finding provides evidence linking work-family stress to decreased output. The findings of this study contribute to the reestablishment of a causal relationship between work-family conflicts, job strain, and performance. The research provides novel insight into the relationship between the two, as well as recommendations for how secondary school teachers in Pakistan might increase their productivity at work and reduce the negative effects of work-life conflicts.
Key Terms: Work-family conflict, Job stress, job performance, well-being, relationship.
Introduction
Teachers are the most valuable resource because they impart information and skills to the next generation. After finishing school, the students work in a variety of fields, making a positive impact on the economy. Challenges have arisen for educators and the educational system as a whole as a result of recent worldwide developments. Stress among educators is another hot problem, although it has received surprisingly little research attention. Teachers’ performance in the classroom suffers as a result of the crises caused by the interplay between work and home responsibilities and the demands of modern life. This study intends to shed light on the factors that have a detrimental effect on the professional effectiveness of secondary school female teachers in Pakistan. The primary objective is to look into how much of an impact work-family tension has on productivity on the workplace. This research aims to better understand what causes stress among female educators and how it affects their performance in the classroom. The link between job performance and the three factors (time-based conflict, strain-based conflict, and work-family conflict) would be explained. Finding and evaluating the connection between these factors will aid elementary schools in Pakistan in recognising the challenges faced by female educators and their impact on students’ academic and behavioural outcomes. The research aims to explore the negative impact of time-based conflict on the job performance of teachers. It also highlights the negative effect of the strain-based conflict on the job performance of the teachers. Moreover, the work family conflicts also restrict the job performance of the teachers of secondary schools in Pakistan. The knowledge obtained from this analysis will help provide information to manage teachers stress and their job performance. This will not only save teachers form the negative effects of stress and poor performance but would also lead to individual and institutional growth, development and productivity in Pakistani secondary schools.
Research Questions
- How does this time difference affect the productivity of Pakistani female elementary school teachers?
- To what extent do female elementary school teachers in Pakistan experience conflict as a result of stress?
- To what extent do female elementary school teachers in Pakistan have difficulties in balancing work and home responsibilities?
Scope of the Study
The purpose of this research is to illuminate the obstacles that female primary school teachers in Pakistan face in achieving their professional goals. The major goal is to examine the relationship between work-family stress and employee output. The goal of this research is to better understand the sources of stress for female educators and its effects on their performance in the classroom. Workplace productivity would be studied in relation to three types of conflict: those involving time, stress, and family. If the characteristics that affect female teachers’ performance in Pakistani primary schools can be discovered and analysed, the findings of this study might be used to inform policy and practise.
Limitations
Since we lacked details on the Pakistani industry, one important limitation of our study is that it only considers a subset of the many elements known to affect workers’ productivity and satisfaction on the job. The research did not have the resources to survey all of Pakistan’s population, especially its public schools, so this may be one of its shortcomings. Although we did our best to include as many public schools as possible in Lahore with our surveys, some were left out. Qualitative information loses its versatility and richness when reduced to numbers. The research can be hampered by this as well.
The fact that the study’s subjects were almost all female also presents a problem. The majority of Pakistan’s school instructors are women. One disadvantage is that, because of time constraints, we could not investigate additional conflict elements that influence workers’ health and productivity on the workplace.
Literature Review
Previous investigations on the effects of stress on the productivity of female educators are included in this section of the research. This section contains a figure that illustrates the correlation between job-related family conflict and performance. This section also provides the theoretical foundation the study will utilise to explain the effects of work-family conflict on productivity on the job.
As more and more people say that their jobs are interfering with their family responsibilities, it’s clear that the modern workplace is struggling with the issue of work-family conflict. Since it may have far-reaching effects on both professional and personal outcomes including productivity, employee turnover, household wealth, health, and stress levels, work-family conflict is gaining attention in the public sphere. Work-family tension is linked to fundamental outcomes in one’s professional, personal, and familial life. According to (Kossek, 2017)
Most studies on the topic of work-family conflict have been conducted in the West. Eight hundred English and French teachers participated in a survey by Travers & Cooper (1997). It was with this goal in mind that the study of teacher stress and its consequences on classroom performance was undertaken. Nonetheless, it has a strong connection to the overarching concept of stress in the workplace, and there is a pressing need to investigate the prevalence and nature of burnout in the performing arts industry as a whole. A look at the current situation in school administration reveals some of the social and authoritative factors that create tension and collapse. The increasing complexity of the teacher’s role and the increasing demands of the modern classroom are the result of a confluence of social and pedagogical shifts. (Nyambongi, 2013)
Nart, S., and Bature, O., authors of another academic publication, discovered that teachers at the fundamental level were significantly impacted by work-family conflict and stress. It’s somewhat endearing that, although not having an effect on job performance or results, work-family conflict and occupational stress related to hierarchical responsibility affect elementary school teachers. Educators have a far higher rate of positive self-judgment and a greater number of socio-mental benefits than those in other professions, as Trevor and Enright (2000) put it. The scientists who made this discovery credit their extraordinary personal choice of calling, which they were able to turn into devotion on schedule with the help of authoritative goals, and their sense of duty to educate people in the future as the primary reasons for their discovery. Increasing teachers’ sense of duty and purpose while decreasing their stress caused by work-family conflicts would be a worthy homage to the hard work of our country’s educators, and this goal may be achieved through strict monitoring and the board approach of school management.
Work-family conflict and teacher burnout are two issues that have been highlighted by the research of Nart and Batur (2014). The first objective is to analyse how teachers’ work-family conflicts influence their levels of stress, dedication to their organisations, and output in the classroom. The second objective is to learn how teacher stress impacts their dedication to the school and their productivity on the job. Work-family conflict and stress on the job have been shown to have a detrimental effect on job performance and organisational commitment among female instructors (Nart, 2014).
Numerous studies have found that tensions between the workplace and the home may negatively impact productivity. These results, based on the available data, are consistent with the literature. Previous studies have already shown the link between stress and poor performance on the job. Bad performance in the classroom has been linked to teacher stress, which has been shown to have a variety of mental and social effects (Stansfield et al., 1999; Friedman, 2000). However, numerous studies demonstrate that stress and work performance may have a positive link, since there are certain individuals who report doing better under stress or pressure. There is also the fact that students have a large say in how their teachers are evaluated, yet their input can be tainted by bias and a lack of focus.
A study done in 2021 on secondary school teachers found that EI is positively correlated with work-family conflict. It also has a beneficial effect on productivity in the workplace. Teachers may benefit from this research by adopting the innovative strategies and practises that will push secondary education forward. Future research should focus on how varying national contexts and contributing variables affect secondary school student achievement.
According to role theory, two of a woman’s most significant roles in life are that of a mother and employee (Grandey, 2005). When a person’s personal experience at work becomes more demanding than usual, stress and tension within their family unit may grow. Therefore, it becomes more challenging for women to meet the requirements of their household duty. In addition to the work-related family conflict outlined above, there is another sort of conflict known as family-work conflict. This type of conflict arises when members of a person’s family try to get in the way of him or her doing their job. This danger to jobs is often seen as a failure to fulfil the obligations and responsibilities associated with the function (Shockley, 2011).
According to Wijayati’s study, a middle school teacher’s job performance suffers when she is distracted by personal issues at home. It was concluded that the best way to motivate teachers to do their best work was for administrators to show concern for their personal lives by listening to and responding to teachers’ concerns about the classroom (Dewie Tri Wijayati, 2020).
The study’s authors divided educators into three unique profiles based on whether they placed a higher value on family or job. Teachers were divided into three groups: those who prioritised work over family, those who prioritised family over work, and those who prioritised both. This was determined by each person’s own perspective on the balance between work and family responsibilities, with some individuals being more family focused than others (Grandey, 2005).
When people place various values on these tasks, they act differently and devote varying amounts of time and effort to them (Greenhaus, 1985). Therefore, a teacher’s professional identity is formed through a multifaceted psychological and social process in which she takes on positions with varied degrees of responsibility and dedication. Changes in a teacher’s work-family profile are a natural response to the dynamic nature of their profession and the students’ needs. Teachers’ job performance has been shown to suffer when they are under stress or have an excessive workload. Because stress and support factors may be the most modifiable for interventions to prevent or alleviate teachers’ work-family conflict, it is important to investigate their effects on work-family conflict among women teachers.
Several studies (Allen et al., 2000; Frone, 2003), among others, have linked work-family conflict to low productivity on the job in the United States. Because of the time, effort, and dedication required to successfully juggle all of one’s responsibilities, the number of Canadian workers who provide care for children or the elderly has steadily increased over the course of the country’s industrial history (Duxbury, 2003). Family problems may arise as a result of long, unchanging work hours, stress at work, an excessive workload, a lack of expertise, or an obsessive focus on the workplace. It causes people to pull away from family obligations, which has a negative impact on their happiness levels. A person’s ability to work, interest in and connection with their job, job happiness, and dedication to and consistency in their employment can all be severely impacted by their caregiving obligations at home and elsewhere.
Greenhaus (1985) distinguished between three categories of work-family conflict based on their origins: stress, conduct, and duration. Stress between jobs is common when there are too many commitments and not enough time in the day. Lack of time and resources has been associated to increased mental and physical fatigue, stress, decreased performance, lessened organisational commitment, and worse work satisfaction (Magnus, 2005). It is accepted that one’s focus may be shifted away from one role’s responsibilities in order to meet the needs of another (Ashforth, 2000). According to the spillover theory, feelings, thoughts, and stress that originate in one role area can easily spread to another. “(William, 1994).
The impact of job and family pressures on productivity has been the subject of much research. However, there is a lack of information about the ways in which primary school teachers in Pakistan handle work-family problems and stress. The study’s objective is to shed light on the challenges faced by female elementary school teachers in Pakistan. The primary objective is to study how stress from work and family life affects performance on the job. The goal of this research is to gain a better understanding of the causes of stress among female educators and its consequences on their professional performance. The negative effects of time-based conflict, strain-based conflict, and work-family conflict on productivity in the workplace would be examined. Finding and evaluating the factors that influence female teachers’ effectiveness in Pakistani primary schools would help shape education policy and practice.
Problem Statement
Examining this connection is essential to the research’s goals, hence the following serves as a problem statement:
“To identify the factors that contribute to job performance in the context of work-family conflict, time-based conflict, and strain-based conflict.”
The theoretical framework for this study is Role Theory. Both the JD-R Model and the Role Theory of Conservation of Resources have been used to learn more about work-family conflicts and their effects on productivity in the workplace. For this reason, scientists Arnold Bakker and Evangelia Demerouti developed the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) Model in 2006. In order to comprehend how job pressure contributes to work-family conflict, resources-and-demands methods stress the need of investigating both demands and resources. Job requirements and their impact on workers’ happiness were visualised with this model. (Janse, 2019).
See figure in (Read more section) pdf.
The following hypotheses were developed to investigate the connection:
H1a: A considerable negative correlation exists between time-based disputes and productivity on the work (H1a).
H1b: Job performance is significantly negatively correlated with strain-based disputes (H1b).
H1c: Work-family tensions significantly correlate with worse job performance, H1c.
H0: Work-family conflicts are positively correlated with job performance, hence the null hypothesis must be rejected.
Research Methodology
Research Design
This research is quantitative since it draws on the results of other correlation studies. Using work-family conflict as an independent variable, this study will analyze the connection between job performance and employee satisfaction. Due to the short time frame (less than a year), this study is a cross-sectional one. This study takes a deductive strategy, meaning that it gathers its material from secondary sources (such as the published literature) and then tests its hypotheses and analyses its findings based on the results. Using the quantitative approach, such as by conducting surveys, the veracity of hypotheses might be examined. The collected data was then subjected to statistical tests to ensure its accuracy.
Google Questionnaires were used to compile the data for this study. Data entry and analysis were both performed in SPSS. SPSS was used to conduct in-depth statistical analyses, including t-tests for independent samples and linear regressions, on all collected data. To ensure validity and reliability, several statistical tests were performed in SPSS. Bivariate correlation tests were performed to ensure validity. Cronbach’s Alpha was used to check the dependability of all variables and their associated items. Typically, a score between 0.3 and 0.7 is trusted to demonstrate data stability and consistency.
Validity of items and validation of research variables are two more uses for factor analysis.
Research Instrument
In order to learn more about the issue at hand and find the answers to the research questions.In order to collect information, questionnaire surveys were developed. The surveys we created had a strong emphasis on the issue at hand. There was a conscious effort to think about issues that may affect work performance, such as stress, family obligations, and lack of free time. Data collection included both closed- and open-ended questions. There were a total of 31 questions in this survey, and they were broken up into three groups based on the three potential points of contention. Questions might be answered with a yes/no or free-form response. Google forms were used to create the online questionnaires. We used a 5-point Likert scale with the options “1=strongly disagree” and “5=strongly agree” and “Never” and “Always” for collecting closed-ended responses. Statistics were analysed and evaluated using SPSS for this study. Job performance was linked to work-family conflict, time-based conflict, and strain-based conflict using SPSS.
Population and Sample
Female educators in Pakistani secondary schools will make up the study’s population. Since 103 people responded to the survey, the sample size is n=103. Female secondary school educators in Lahore were the intended readers. Data was collected using Google forms in a convenient and voluntary online sample.
Pilot Testing
Before beginning the real investigation, a pilot test of the questionnaire was conducted. To ensure the survey is free of ethical concerns and can be completed by respondents. How simple it is for respondents to understand the survey’s questions. Ten surveys were sent as a preliminary run. In addition to filling out the survey, respondents were also asked for suggestions on how to improve it. In order to implement the suggested adjustments to the survey.
Ethical Considerations
Ethical considerations were taken into account, and all rules were observed. No questions on social status were included. Respondents were given a brief overview of the study and the researcher’s goals for collecting this data before beginning the survey questions. Individuals’ identities and the names of their organisations will remain concealed throughout the research process. In addition, participants were reassured that their participation in the study was voluntary and they might end their involvement at any time.
