A study of work interference with family (WIF) among managers is described, contrasting four clusters of countries, one of which is individualistic (Anglo) and three of which are collectivistic (Asia, East Europe, and Latin America). Country cluster (Anglo vs. each of the others) moderated the relation of work demands with strain‐based WIF, with the Anglo country cluster having the strongest relationships. Country cluster moderated some of the relationships of strain‐based WIF with both job satisfaction and turnover intentions, with Anglos showing the strongest relationships. Cluster differences in domestic help were ruled out as the possible explanation for these moderator results.

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The majority of work-family research has focused on negative spillover between demands and outcomes and between the work and family domains (e.g., work-family conflict; see review by Eby, Casper, Lockwood, Bordeaux, & Brinley, 2005). The theory that guided this research was in most cases role stress theory (Greenhaus & Beutell, 1985) or the role scarcity hypothesis (Edwards & Rothbard, 2000). However, according to spillover theory, work-related activities and satisfaction also affect non-work performance, and vice versa. Recently, in line with the positive psychology movement (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000), work-family interaction research has also included concepts of positive spillover (Bakker & Schaufeli, 2008; Grzywacz & Marks, 2000). This emerging focus supplements the dominant conflict perspective by identifying new ways of cultivating human resource strength. Greenhaus and Powell (2006) suggested that work-family enrichment best captured the mechanism of the positive work-family interface, and conceptualized work-family enrichment as "the extent to which experiences in one role improve the quality of life in the other role" (p. 73). Carlson, Kacmar, Wayne, and Grzywacz (2006) described the bi-directional and multidimensional concept of work-to-family enrichment (WFE) as how family roles benefit from work roles through developmental resources, positive affect and psychosocial capital derived from involvement in work. Similarly, family-to-work enrichment (FWE) is defined as how work roles benefit from family roles through developmental resources, positive affect and gains in efficiency derived from involvement in family. As the concept and measure of work-family enrichment has been specified and validated, the identification of factors that enable this positive side of work-family interface has become possible. Published theory testing research has demonstrated that the enrichment and conflict components of work-family interface are distinct,

Although the term work–family/life balance is widely employed, an agreed definition of this term has proved elusive. Instead, an array of definitions and measures populate the literature. The variety of work–life definitions and measures provide limited value for both the theoretical advancement of the construct and for practical human resource (HR) interventions. In this article, we review six conceptualisations of work–life balance found in the literature: (1) multiple roles; (2) equity across multiple roles; (3) satisfaction between multiple roles; (4) fulfilment of role salience between multiple roles; (5) a relationship between conflict and facilitation; and (6) perceived control between multiple roles. Based on our review of this research we identify the two primary features of the work–life balance definitions and propose a new definition of this construct.

The present study explored the availability of flexible work arrangements (FWA) and their relationship with manager outcomes of job satisfaction, turnover intentions, and work-to-family conflict (WFC) across country clusters. We used individualism and collectivism to explain differences in FWA availability across Latin American, Anglo, and Asian clusters. Managers from the Anglo cluster were more likely to report working in organisations that offer FWA compared to managers from other clusters. For Anglo managers, flextime was the only FWA that had significant favorable relationships with the outcome variables. For Latin Americans, part-time work negatively related with turnover intentions and strain-based WFC. For Asians, flextime was unrelated to time-based WFC, and telecommuting was positively associated with strainbased WFC. The clusters did not moderate the compressed work week and outcome relationships. Implications for practitioners adopting FWA practices across cultures are discussed.