Internal Structure of the Work–Family Conflict Questionnaire (WFCQ) in Teacher Teleworking

Abstract

The interference between family and work roles has led to the development of scales for their measurement. However, instrumental studies of work–family conflict have not been conducted in the context of teacher teleworking during the COVID-19 pandemic. For this reason, the objectives of this study were set to obtain evidence of the internal structure and fairness of the Blanch and Aluja Work–Family Conflict Questionnaire, as well as its association with job satisfaction and other sociodemographic variables. A total of 235 Peruvian school teachers between the ages of 24 and 72 years (M = 43.79 and SD = 9.67) responded to the scale using the online form. The analysis employed the non-parametric item response theory modeling (Mokken scaling analysis). The structure of two correlated factors was confirmed: work conflict in the family (WCF) and family conflict in the work (FCW). Both dimensions were invariant with respect to sex group and educational level. The association of both dimensions with job satisfaction was theoretically convergent, and the gender of the teachers slightly moderated this relationship. The reliability was adequate for group research. Finally, the instrument can be useful in the organizational context of teachers who telework.

Negative Impact of Telework, Job Insecurity, and Work–Life Conflict on Employee Behaviour

“…Lack of balance between telework and private life had a significant negative influence on women's health during the COVID-19 pandemic [54]. The work-life conflict was greater in situations when teachers were forced to telework as a result of COVID-19 quarantine when they had not previously worked remotely [12]. Employees were not prepared for remote working, encountering difficulties in managing the blurring line between personal life and work, requiring more organisation and supervisors to support them [55].…”

“…Before the COVID-19 pandemic, teleworking was adopted sporadically in certain industries, such as IT (which by nature allowed remote virtual interactions [11]), education [12], and partially in governance or retail, etc. [13][14][15].…”