Employees struggling with work‐related cognitions, emotions, and associated energy levels during non‐work time can find their private roles impaired and work–life balance derogated. To reduce unwanted psychological preoccupation with work concerns, boundary theory suggests employees find their ideal way to integrate or segment both life domains. In this study, the authors design and evaluate an intervention teaching mindfulness as a cognitive–emotional segmentation strategy to promote work–life balance. They use a randomized waitlist control group design to evaluate effects of a 3‐week online self‐training intervention, with 246 employees participating at pre‐ and post‐test, and 191 participating at a 2‐week follow‐up. As expected, experimental group participants, compared with control group participants, experienced significantly less strain‐based work–family conflict and significantly more psychological detachment and satisfaction with work–life balance. Practitioner points Mindfulness, a cognitive–emotional segmentation strategy, enables employees to balance between work and private life. Voluntary organizational health and work–life balance programmes should include low‐cost but effective brief mindfulness interventions.

This study investigated the role of four recovery experiences during lunch break for employees' afternoon well-being. We hypothesized that lunch-break recovery experiences (psychological detachment, relaxation, control, and relatedness) reduce afternoon exhaustion and enhance afternoon work engagement via replenished personal resources (i.e., state of being recovered immediately after break and subsequent self-efficacy regarding the upcoming tasks in the afternoon). One hundred and nine employees provided daily survey data three times a day (i.e., start of work, after lunch break, end of work) over a period of two workweeks. Multilevel path analysis showed that relaxation, control, and relatedness during lunch break negatively predicted afternoon exhaustion and positively predicted afternoon work engagement via state of being recovered. For relaxation and relatedness, we additionally found positive serial indirect effects on afternoon work engagement via state of being recovered and self-efficacy. Psychological detachment was not related to personal resources and afternoon well-being. This study demonstrates that experiencing control over lunch break and using the lunch break to relax and to relate to others are indirectly associated with improved afternoon well-being via replenished personal resources. Practitioner pointsRelaxation, control, and relatedness constitute lunch-break recovery experiences that indirectly foster feeling confident, replenished, and engaged in the afternoon. Employees should strive to spend their lunch breaks in ways that help them feel relaxed, related, and in control. Organizations should provide their employees with sufficient break control and offer environments that facilitate relaxation and socializing during lunch break.

Abstract. Changes in technology, economy, and demography have generated today’s mobile and flexible workplace. These aspects, while leading to more permeable boundaries, render it more difficult to manage the boundaries between life domains. We conducted a quasi-experimental study to evaluate the effects of an intervention teaching mindfulness as a cognitive–emotional segmentation strategy to promote well-being. In all, 191 employees participated in the 3-week online self-training intervention and completed the preintervention–postintervention and follow-up questionnaires. As expected, the experimental group participants compared to the control group participants experienced significantly less emotional exhaustion and negative affect, and significantly more life satisfaction. Moreover, we could show that boundary management competency can be improved with an online-based self-training intervention.

In this day-reconstruction study, we examined predictors of taking a micro-break (i.e., a short break from work). On the basis of a resource-regulation perspective, we proposed that micro-breaks are taken in states that ask for resource replenishment, and that such states result from how work is experienced. Specifically, we hypothesized that need for recovery and desire for self-reward directly relate to taking a micro-break, and that experiences while working (i.e., task aversiveness and satisfaction with task performance) indirectly relate to taking a micro-break via need for recovery and desire for self-reward. Using a day-reconstruction approach, we collected daily survey data over 1 work week from 120 individuals. Multilevel modeling showed that experiencing task aversiveness indirectly predicted taking a micro-break via desire for self-reward. Need for recovery and experiencing satisfaction with task performance were not related to taking a micro-break. Findings suggest that individuals do not take a micro-break when needed, but instead do so when wishing to give themselves a reward.

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